Heart of Steel
by AnotherAverageAuthor
Summary: TW for abusive relationships and mild coarse language. Summary inside.
1. Extended Summary and Note

_**When you're born into a family of genius scientists, with a superhero sister blasted to Earth from the stratosphere, not everything is destined to be easy. Frankie, youngest of the three Danvers sisters, had known that from her first day in the world. What she hadn't anticipated was that adult life wasn't going to get much better.**_

Yo, wassup.  
(does anyone say that anymore? I dunno) I've had this idea *brewing* for a while and I finally decided to write it. It won't be good but at least it'll be done. So.

This is kind of canon compliant, like somethings are the same, but somethings might be different because it's been awhile since I've seen the show. Oops. But I may leave out some episodes or plots because they're just not important. So enjoy! (or dont, i mean its really up to you. no one can really force someone else to enjoy something)

I also would like to mention that the ages are royally screwed bc by the time I found a reliable age for Kara to base everyone else's ages off of, I was already halfway through and couldn't be stuffed changing everything.

K bye.


	2. Prologue

_Alex looked over at Frankie. The little sister nobody had really ever noticed, the one who was always skipped over. The girl who she had never really gotten along with until she had to. The one who had always gone to a different school to her sisters so that she could stay out of the way of their studies._

 _The one who was now sitting on her own couch as an adult, curled in on herself with wet eyes, telling Alex about a man who she had trusted, and who had hurt her. The little sister who was constantly made to feel as though she was shit and didn't tell anyone. The little sister who, for every second that passed, was looking more and more like a scared child; more like the baby sister Alex had known when she was younger._

 _And Alex was going to murder the man who had done that to her._


	3. The Girl of Steel

(Previously 'Flight 237' and 'It's Going Down')

* * *

"I have a new case for you, Danvers. Armed robbery, $100,000 worth of gold stolen-"

Frankie frowned. Looking up from her work, she watched as her boss scowled down at her. Crawford, with his impeccably groomed facial hair and tight-ass suit, was not a very happy man. His pencil moustache quivered into a sneer.

She jumped as he dropped the new stack of papers on her desk.

"Sir, I-"

"The hearing is on Thursday, I'll expect the case on my desk by Wednesday at the very latest."

He turned and began to walk away. Frankie felt her mouth open slightly and she quickly shut it, watching him stroll leisurely away. She stood up and called after him.

"Sir, I can't have it done by Wednesday. I've got so much work to do already and it's my sister's birthday tomorrow. I need more-"

Crawford turned around sharply, cutting her off.

"I'll expect it on my desk by Wednesday, Danvers. That's final." He strolled through the crowds, narrowly missing a police officer on the way out.

Frankie sat back down, huffing under her breath. She turned to the stack of paper Crawford had dumped on her desk and eyed it wearily. It was at least an inch tall. That amount of prep would normally take all week. It was going to be nearly impossible. Add the fact that Kara's birthday was on Tuesday, and she might as well be packing her bags.

She groaned and laid her head on the hard wood. It was going to be a very long couple of days.

* * *

When Frankie arrived at her apartment that night, she threw down her bag and collapsed on the couch. She aimlessly turned on the tv, where it opened to the news. She sat watching for a minute. At the first ad break, she found herself zoning out.

The next night actually promised to be fun. Kara didn't really like to make a huge deal out of her birthdays, but Alex and Frankie were more than happy to make it a good time anyway. They'd likely be alone, just the three of them and there was a pretty much zero chance that they were going to plan a rager.

Alex was at that moment on a plane to Geneva. It was very unlikely that she'd feel like hard-core partying.

Frankie turned back to the tv.

"And in other news, two twin puppies have learned how to skateboard. Here's Jennifer with the full story."

"Who calls this news?" Frankie muttered to herself, flicking the tv off. She stood up and headed to her bedroom to change into something comfier. She reached the cupboard and pulled out a sweater and tracksuit pants. Changing quickly, she dumped her work clothes on the floor because she couldn't really be bothered to clean them up, and worked her way back into the kitchen.

Running a hand through her now unkempt dark brown hair, she grabbed her favourite mug and started making coffee.

As the water boiled, she couldn't help thinking of when her life was somewhat normal. She sounded like every teenage fantasy movie ever. She'd been living an ordinary life, up until something out of the ordinary showed up, flipping everything upside down. But just because it was cliché, it didn't mean it was any less true.

She'd been eleven when an alien appeared out of nowhere, becoming yet another older sister in her life. Alex hadn't been pleased, and it had taken her several years to get over her feelings, but Frankie and Kara had clicked more quickly.

Kara was sweet and genuine, which was something Frankie had been missing for a long time.

But after she was sent to boarding school, Frankie lost the connection she'd had with both of her sisters, and over the six years she spent there, Alex and Kara grew closer, leaving Frankie alone in the dust.

They'd taken time later to make up for it, but she still didn't share the same bond that Alex and Kara did. She found it hard to relate entirely with Kara now that they were all adults and the stubborn, sibling rivalry that she'd grown with Alex had carried through to their friendship now.

Right then, the phone rang. She picked it up and looked at the caller id, smiling when she saw who it was. She answered the phone.

"Hey Kara, what's going on?"

"Turn on the news."

"Why, what's-"

"Frankie, just do it."

Frankie picked up the remote and the tv sputtered on. It was still turned onto the news like before, but a different headline was playing. And she felt her stomach drop at the sight of it.

BREAKING NEWS: FLIGHT 237 ENGINE TROUBLE

She barely heard the newsreader's voice say that the flight to Geneva was having engine troubles, barely heard him talk about its loss of altitude and how it would go down over the river.

She dropped the mug.

* * *

Frankie knocked frantically on the door until it was opened seconds later by a frazzled looking Kara, who sighed in relief and opened the door fully, letting the younger in.

"I'm so glad you came," Kara said as Frankie moved to the couch and watched as her tv showed an image of the plane as it flew low over the buildings of National City. They both physically shuddered as one of the wings narrowly missed a tall wall of windows.

"What's happening?" Frankie asked as she collapsed on the couch, worry seeping through her veins. Her big sister was on that plane and there was nothing they could do to stop it. Unless...

"I'm going to stop the plane."

Frankie turned in shock to Kara and gave her a look.

"What do you mean 'stop the plane'?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

"Well, I should have the strength, and I can fly. Though I haven't done it in years-"

"Kara, no. I'm not letting you reveal yourself to the world. Not yet."

Kara had always been different ever since she landed on Earth. Yes, she had super abilities and could stop a moving barge, but she always wanted to help people. Even if it was just in a miniscule way. It was both inspiring and could lead to some very stupid decisions. Like this one.

"Think about who is on that plane. Loads of people, one of them is your sister. Our sister. It would all be worth it in the end," Kara pleaded, staring at Frankie like a small child. As though she was the younger one and needed Frankie's permission to go out.

Frankie didn't know what to say. She knew that she should probably say no, but she couldn't. Alex, who had been there for her and who trusted her, would most likely die if she didn't. Plus, Frankie knew that she couldn't really stop Kara from going.

"Fine. Go. Just, be discreet. No one needs to know who you are." And Kara was off in a flash.

* * *

She was going to die.

That was Alex's first thought when the plane hit extreme turbulence.

The people around her wondered what was going on, asking their friends, relatives, and anyone around for answers, but no one had any. The flight attendants quickly came up and down the aisles saying that the plane was having engine trouble and that it was only a minor inconvenience.

Minor inconvenience my ass, she thought as one of the flight attendants sped through the aisle, pale and drenched in sweat.

She glanced out a window and her stomach dropped. They were close, too close to the city. She watched in horror as a wing soared and nearly scraped one of the buildings. She closed her eyes, waiting for the impact that was bound to hit soon. She could vaguely hear the captain yelling orders and tried not to pay attention to the fact that everyone had dropped all pretence and was preparing for what was to be the most terrifying moment of their lives. Trapped 400 feet above the river squashed in a cabin full of strangers, on a plane that was bound for the depths.

Then, as if out of nowhere, a figure, looking like a person flew, literally flew through the sky alongside them. The people on the plane who had seen it turned to their companions, questioning what they had happened. But to Alex, no questions had to be asked. There was no mistaking that 'thing' flying beside the plane.

"Kara," Alex whispered, barely loud enough for anyone to hear.

Suddenly, her sister disappeared and the plane tilted upwards. What was she doing? People screamed at the sudden movement and flew backward in their chairs. Alex looked out the window again.

And wished that she hadn't.

A bridge loomed ahead of them, getting closer every excruciatingly long second. If something didn't happen soon, they were going to crash right into it. And then it wouldn't just be the plane in trouble, the bridge was loaded with cars, people who were driving home after a long day's work.

The plane began to shake terrifyingly from side to side. There were more screams and shouts and the flight attendants ran to their seats as quick as they could. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the plane tipped completely on its side and Alex knew what Kara was doing.

People yelled as they were thrown sideways in their seats.

Hurriedly looking out the window again, Alex could see nothing but the sky, deep blue and cloudless. It would have been beautiful if it wasn't so morbid. She sat back in her seat, hoping to all that was good that she and everyone else on the plane would make it out alive.

* * *

Frankie sat with bated breath from her spot on the couch. The news picture was clearly showing Kara, what the station had dubbed as 'the mysterious flying thing'.

Creative.

She watched as the plane flew closer to the water every second that passed. While she couldn't be sure what Alex and Kara were thinking, she still knew them well enough to have an idea. Alex had to be terrified, if not for herself, then for the others with her, for those on the plane who couldn't hope for the best. And Kara, she was lifting a plane with her bare hands. There was nothing she couldn't do.

And it was then as she was watching the plane slowly level out, become stable once more, that not for the first time, she felt helpless. As though there was nothing she could do. And it was pretty much true. She was sat safe and sound in Kara's apartment while Kara was out there saving a fucking plane. She couldn't see inside the cabin, but she almost knew that Alex was probably trying to help wherever she could. There was nothing Frankie could do at that moment that would make her feel useful.

She didn't have superpowers, or the moral strength to be strong when everyone around her was panicking. She couldn't do anything to stop the plane.

A wave of nausea passed through her as it often did, leaving her feeling sick. She stood up in an attempt to distract herself, pacing the rug in front of the tv. She quickly snapped her attention back to the screen and gasped.

The plane was no longer level but tilted almost completely on its side. The more it grew closer to the bridge, the less the camera could pick up Kara. Just as Frankie thought the plane was going to collide with the hard, impenetrable, deadly steel, it soared sideways through two gaps in the supports, narrowly avoiding cars and people in the process. The sound of metal scraping concrete was so loud that Frankie didn't need the tv to hear the deafening grind as it blasted through the whole city.

Just as it came out on the other side, the plane turned again so that it was flat and Frankie could once again see Kara, gently letting the cabin down onto the water. It came to a stop on the surface of the lake and Kara took off before more people could see her.

Frankie collapsed on the couch, relief flooding her veins. It was all over.

Alex was safe.


	4. Birthday Bonanza

_(Previously 'I Hate Tuesdays' and 'A Birthday Party')_

* * *

 _Beep beep beep beep_

Frankie rolled over, her face effectively squashed against the pillow.

"Mmph, five more minutes," she grunted to no one as she reached out and turned off her alarm. She rolled back over without even opening her eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

As she lay in bed, she couldn't help wondering how people could wake up earlier than ten. She was barely able to scrape seven on a weekday. Most days, she was barely on time for work. Crawford had even told her that if she was late one more time, there would be 'consequences more severe than your eighth-grade English teacher', whatever that meant.

With all of the drama the night before, what with Alex nearly dying and all, Frankie was counting her lucky stars it was Saturday.

Saturday was the best day in her opinion because it came after Friday. You could do nothing and not feel guilty about it. She was seriously considering just staying in bed for the rest of the day, nothing to worry about. She could-

 _Beep beep beep beep_

Frankie found it odd that her alarm was being so persistent. It wasn't like she had anywhere to be. She then realized it wasn't her alarm at all, but her ringtone. Someone was calling her. She reached over and grabbed her phone off her nightstand, checking the caller id.

 _The Boss Guy_

Why was Crawford calling her on a Saturday at, she checked the time, 10:37 in the morning?

Wait.

 _Shit!_

It was Tuesday.

* * *

She sprinted into the building, bypassing the wait for the elevator and taking the stairs three at a time. She forced open the main door to the reception and skidded to a halt at the front desk.

"Ms Danvers. So nice to see that you've finally arrived, what, two and a half hours late. I must say, that's a new record." A young, dark-haired receptionist looked up, smirking good-naturedly.

"Shut up Lou, I'm here now."

Louise and Frankie had always gotten along well ever since they met on the first day of training. They had bonded over their common feeling of being constantly overshadowed by older siblings, and a shared love of Mexican food.

"At least you're a lawyer. Crawford still insists that I'm 'not qualified enough for the job'. But hey, this is fun too I guess." Frankie smiled at her friend and passed by, moving into the main office area.

She paused, turning to call back to Louise.

"Hey, sign me in will you, I need to get started if I want to make it for Kara's birthday tonight. And Alex wouldn't be very happy if I turned up headless."

"Oh yeah. That's today isn't it?"

Frankie nodded.

"Well, give Kara and Alex my love."

"Will do," Frankie said as she shuffled over to her desk. She eyed the paperwork that still sat on her desk from the day before.

 _This is it. This is how I die,_ she thought, pulling the stack toward her with a grimace.

She spotted a tall figure storming between the desks and quickly tried to make herself look as busy as possible before the man reached her.

"Danvers, finally decided to show up, huh?" Crawford loomed over her, sneering.

"Sir, I didn't mean-"

"I don't want to hear a lame excuse, I want you to go home because apparently, it doesn't matter to you if you actually do any work."

She dared a chance of looking up- and wished she hadn't. He was glaring at her like she'd questioned his personal integrity and silently willed her to challenge him.

"Danvers, just because you're one of the best lawyers we have," he continued, "doesn't mean that you can just decide to show up whenever you want. Despite what you may think, we're not going to drop everything for you the instant you can't be bothered to do something. Just get out of my office."

Frankie knew well not to push it. She stood back up, grabbed the paper and walked out in a hurry, her head determinedly down. She passed Lou on her way out but didn't look at her. She just quickly hurried down the stairs and into the parking lot, trying hard not to get too upset.

She wasn't entirely sure what had just happened. Had she been fired? She soon found the answer to that question when she got a text from Crawford that simply said, _I want you here on time tomorrow or your career's future will be dark._

At the same time, she also got a text from Lou.

 _what happened? areyou OK? You lookked like someone just killed ur puppy._

Deciding not to answer Crawford, she turned her attention to her best friend, quickly typing out a response.

 _Nah, just preeeety sure I'm gonna lose my job tomorrow :(_

She didn't wait for a reply, but jogged out onto the street and hailed a passing taxi, hoping to all that was good that she would still have a job next week.

She tried her best to swallow down the feeling of shame and anger that had been steadily rising in her throat since the tender age of eleven and held her head up high, distracting herself with the thought of planning Kara's birthday party.

* * *

Alone in her apartment, Alex watched the liquid courage swirl around the bottom of her glass.

The living room, silent as a graveyard, was cool and sparsely lit, just how Alex liked it.

Taking one more look at the glass, she downed the rest of the whiskey without even blinking and sighed in relief as it ran down her throat.

She'd been stressed recently.

Kara had made an arguably admirable decision with the whole plane saving thing, but the fact remained that she'd made that decision without considering the consequences and now Alex had to clean up the aftermath.

Her boss at the DEO wanted her all over the famed 'flying person', and the worst part of it was that she was still going around and doing it in secret. She couldn't tell Kara, not yet. Kara was already going too far with the one rescue she'd done, letting the world know she existed like that, she didn't need to know that Alex could open the door to doing it on a more permanent basis.

And that Alex had been lying.

And Frankie, sweet innocent Frankie was completely clueless to everything that had gone on to Alex since they were kids. To a certain extent. Alex knew that when she told Kara about her real job, Frankie would still have to be left under the cut, only because getting Kara on board with what her boss had planned was going to be difficult enough as it was.

She wished that it wasn't like that, wanted more than anything to live in honesty and truth rather than lies and deceit, but something in her gut was telling her that she would soon be out of that particular rabbit hole, so she endured.

Speaking of, Alex's phone rang from on the counter next to her and she picked it up. Before she could even say hello, Frankie's voice came frantically through the speaker.

 _"Alex, I don't know what I'm doing. I tried to call the Chinese place, but they were all out of potstickers somehow so I called the pizza place down the street and then-"_

Alex cut her off quickly, smiling through the phone.

"Frankie, I'm sure it'll be fine. Can you cook anything?"

 _"I could make calzones, but I don't really have the stuff for anything else."_

"Ok, what about PJ's?"

Frankie paused. _"Downtown's kinda far away, isn't it?"_

"You've got time."

She could almost feel Frankie nod through the phone. _"Sounds good. I'll get some stuff from there. You're in charge of telling Kara that there aren't any potstickers though."_

"Will do. I'll see you at six."

 _"Yeah see you then. Love you"_

"Love you too, Frank."

* * *

By the time Alex and Kara arrived at Frankie's, everything was set up and in its place. The food, an assortment of Thai, calzones and sadly, no potstickers, sat on the table, wine stood on the counter and Netflix was open on the tv.

Frankie answered the knock at the door with a wide grin on her face, which only faltered for a split second when she opened the door to not two people, but three. She quickly replaced the smile as Alex, Kara and somebody Frankie vaguely remembered as Kara's friend stepped into her apartment.

"Hey guys, welcome. Happy birthday Kara! Yeah everyone come in. Lou says hi."

As everyone passed over the threshold, exchanging hugs and gifts, Frankie couldn't help but wonder who this person was. She didn't completely mind, but Kara seemed to sense her hesitation and said, "Frankie, I hope you don't mind I invited my friend Winn. He had nothing else to do and I wanted him here, sorry I should have given you more notice."

Frankie didn't know Winn, although when she thought about it, she had heard his name in conversation before. But she could tell from her sister's tone that there was something more to his invitation.

"Of course not. The more the merrier, Winn. Make yourself at home." She glanced around at the room, suddenly noticing the mess. "Sorry about the clutter, I would've cleaned up if I knew I would be having a guest."

Winn simply smiled, brushing it off and Frankie managed to get a good look at him. Decked out in a cardigan, tie and khakis, she could barely see any skin apart from his wrists and head. From the way that Kara had described him, Frankie wasn't surprised that this was his dress sense, but it was charming in an odd sense. He looked down at the floor suddenly, seeming embarrassed about something or other.

Alex jumped in moving straight for the kitchen and shouted, "Enough with the formalities, let's have some fun!"

Everyone else followed with cheers of their own and cracked open the wine and some of the beer Alex had brought with her.

Straight away, mainly as a condolence for the lack of Kara's favourite cuisine, Frankie pulled down a rather spectacular chocolate cake.

They sang Happy Birthday quickly, mainly because Kara was about to start drooling at the sight of it.

Once they finished and everyone had a slice of cake, Alex grabbed the booze, turned up the music, and declared it a real party.

* * *

As the night pressed on, several things began to happen. Alex, always the responsible one, had gotten fairly tipsy for a Tuesday night and was trying to convince Kara to let her ride her Ducati home. Kara - who had the Blood-Alcohol Concentration of a literal god, and was not even close to drunk - was gently trying to guide Alex away from the front door and general direction of the bike. What's more, Frankie and Winn had gotten to talking.

They had discussed many things including computers, Star Wars, Winn's hobbies in general, whether or not she would have a job tomorrow, CatCo's ludicrous policies and more recently, Superman.

Frankie could see that Winn was quite fond of the hero from the way he was engaged in a deep, detailed description of Superman's latest Metropolis adventure. Frankie had known for a long time that Clark was Kara's cousin but had never actually met or spoken to him. There was something about the way Winn was talking about him though, deep in admiration, that gave her a strange feeling.

She couldn't imagine what it would be like when he found out about Kara's powers.

"...and I've always thought, how cool it would be if we had our own superhero. Someone to fly around and stop crime before it even starts, with a secret identity and some lame disguise that somehow manages to fool everyone except the people that matter most, you know?"

Frankie looked back up at his face, his eyes glittering slightly in the low light. She could only feel slightly worried that he was onto something though. She opened her mouth to say something, but he beat her to it.

"So when I found out about Kara and everything, I was kind of excited. Like a real-life superhero here in National City! But I realised that she probably wants to keep it a secret. Wait until the right moment. Other than the plane last night I mean. No, wait. I- I didn't mean-"

But Frankie simply looked at him. _He knew?_ _How did he know?_ She must have had a very blank look on her face because he quickly shut his mouth before explaining, "Kara told me this morning. I guess you didn't know that. Well, I mean, she said not many people know so I feel really privileged. But, wait you knew right?" He was suddenly looking at her with such horror that she was surprised.

"Uhm- yeah. Yeah, I knew." She managed to stutter out.

"Oh, ok good because that could've ended really badly."

At that moment, a crash was heard from the other side of the room, followed by a bottle smashing.

 _"Shit!"_ Alex yelled, jumping back from the broken glass.

"Woah, alright." Frankie leapt up, carefully stepped around the glass and reached the others. Kara shot her an apologetic look mouthing _I think I'm going to take this one home._ Frankie just smiled and nodded, moving out of the way for her.

Kara promptly left, dragging Alex behind her, leaving Frankie and Winn alone. He cleared his throat.

"Well, I'd better be off too. I've got work tomorrow and I don't know about Alex but I'm not in the mood to be late to that." He stood up, grabbing his coat from where it was draped over a chair and he shrugged it on.

"Thanks," Frankie said, moving to face him. "It was really great to actually meet you."

"Yeah, I had a lot of fun."

"I'm glad."

A silence stretched out for a little too long before he broke the gaze and strolled to the door, nearly tripping on the way.

"Watch your step!" Frankie called quickly.

"Smooth." He muttered, before closing the door behind him and Frankie was left alone to wonder what had just happened.

* * *

A/N

Sorry for the really long delay, I've just been swamped with school work, but now that it's holidays, I should be able to post another chapter soon. Also sorry that literally nothing happened in this chapter, I went off script for a little bit, and that was probably not a good idea. Things should start moving a bit faster from now on. Hopefully.

K bye.


	5. This Isn't Your Apartment

"No, no one knew she was pregnant."

"But surely Peter did, I mean they were married."

Frankie looked at Lou, barely hiding a snicker.

"Why should Peter know? Everyone knows the husband is always last to find out anything, that's always how it works."

"But Frank, I watched the episode again last night and Maria specifically said, 'I told Peter.'"

Frankie opened her mouth to retaliate but shut it again quickly when she saw her boss enter the room.

"Lou, you'd better go. Crawface is coming." She warned, turning back to her computer to try and hide the fact that she had done little to no work. Crawford seemed to sense something was going on but didn't walk over, merely sneering in her direction. A clear indicator to start concentrating. Louise turned away and walked off trying to look as innocent as possible, whistling jovially.

Opening the file she was working on, she quickly started typing notes on the very basic assault case she had been assigned. The task was way under her level - something the new kids normally handled - but she had a sneaking suspicion Crawford was trying to see if she was still capable of her job. Whatever it was, she didn't want to give him another excuse to try and fire her.

It had only been a week since she'd last been sure her job was in danger, but luckily that had straightened itself out eventually. All she'd gotten was a stern talking to from Crawford.

 _Make sure you never, ever do anything like this again. I employed you for one reason only and that reason is that you have real talent. Your problem is that you don't care to show it. I know you, Francesca. You're better than this. Be better than this. I'm giving you one last chance and if I catch you slacking off again, I will have no choice but to fire you._

She still shuddered at the memory. It had to have been some kind of record to get off that lightly with him. She quickly returned to her report, determined to have it finished by lunchtime. Scrolling through the details, she noticed that this particular offence had been stopped at the scene by none other than Supergirl, a name that was popping up a lot in her co-worker's cases.

She couldn't help but be proud of her sister. She had been stopping crimes all over the city and was now becoming a regular discussion topic in the office break room. It seemed as though she had decided to go public and was now getting involved with helping the NCPD, FBI and other government agencies.

She'd also noticed that Kara and Alex had been acting strange recently. They were spending a whole lot more time together than they usually did and both had seemed to be too busy to answer her calls every now and then. It wasn't anything big she just, couldn't help but feel that they were up to something. She knew it was none of her business and it was probably nothing but, she couldn't help the way she felt.

Finally straightening out the report, she emailed it to her department head, trying to shake the doubt in her stomach. Hoping that there was nothing going on, she reached into her bag, feeling around for her purse. Not coming up with anything, she turned on her phone's torch to get a better view.

Rifling through the junk, she found nothing except a deep, lingering urge to clean the mess from the bag. She thought back to where she could have left it, sighing when she realised it was probably in Kara's apartment. She had been over briefly last night, citing some crap excuse that she couldn't remember, but it had led to being essentially kicked out rather hastily. She grabbed her phone again, dialling Kara's number.

The phone rung for a minute before, unsurprisingly, going to voicemail.

Frankie sighed yet again. She needed her purse, but something told her she shouldn't go into Kara's apartment without asking, even though both Kara and Alex seemed to have no problem rocking up at _her_ apartment unannounced.

She contemplated whether it was worth spending her lunch break on a bus before, _screw it, I need a coffee._

Passing Louise on her way out, she quickly said, "Left my purse at Kara's last night, I'll be back in ten." Sensing more questions coming, Frankie quickly hurried her pace and sped out the door.

* * *

Hurrying through the corridor to Kara's apartment was not a pleasant experience. She spent most of her energy trying to locate her spare key she had been given back when the apartment was Alex's, and so didn't hear the voices coming from inside until she was only a few paces from the door.

Stopping in her tracks, Frankie could kind of make out what they were saying, something like _Nice job out there, you really let him have it,_ and _Yeah, they should all be scared of you._ She immediately recognized one of the voices as Winn's but the other, she had no idea about.

Slowly putting the key in the lock and turning it, she mentally braced herself for what would be on the other side. Pushing open the door, she tried and failed to remove the key from the lock, stopping awkwardly to shove at one of the latches. Straightening up, she looked around and saw two young men, both looking equally shocked to see her standing at the door.

One of them was indeed Winn but she had no idea who the other guy was. She could barely miss the various monitors and speakers and wires arranged haphazardly across the counter and table. There was an empty pizza box and several soda cans littering the room and the very faint, very distinct sound of cheering coming from, _somewhere._

"Hello..." Winn spoke first cutting the silence. Frankie glanced at him. He looked completely and utterly guilty. He was wearing a shirt that was short sleeved, giving her a good view of his arms, something she'd never seen before. His top button was undone, just enough that she could see some of his chest from the doubled over position he was in.

The other guy was much taller she immediately noticed that he definitely worked out. His arms alone were massive.

He was most certainly not her type.

Frankie continued to stare blankly at the two guys before Winn decided to speak again.

"I'm guessing you want some context as to why we're trashing Kara's apartment," he said, staring at the ground. Frankie stared at both of them in confusion however until she swallowed.

"Yeah, Winn. Actually, I would. Much appreciated. Also, who is this?" She asked, pointedly looking at the other guy.

"I'm James. My name's James. I'm a friend of Kara's." He too barely looked at her, instead finding his shoes extremely interesting. She could still faintly see a slight tinge to his dark cheeks.

"James, huh? Well, that still doesn't explain how you came to be in my sister's apartment looking like you're trying to set up your own secret service."

For some reason, they looked guiltily at each other before Winn said, "Yeah, uh, I guess it does kind of look like that."

They looked scared. Scared of her? A more, _impure,_ though flew into her mind and she suddenly found herself not exactly wanting an explanation.

"Right, well," she looked around and spotted her purse lying on the coffee table. "I left something here, so I'm just gonna-"

At that exact moment, the door crashed open behind her and a blue and red blur sped through the entrance.

"Guys, is everything ok? You weren't answering the comms and-"

She broke off, seeing Frankie standing at the counter.

"Frankie?! Hi. What- what are you doing here?"

"Just, getting my purse. I left it here, last night. Kara why, I- what are you doing?"

"Frankie, I think we should talk."

Kara looked determinedly between Winn and James before they got the message and scurried out the door but not before Kara said after them, "Thanks for your help today guys, I'll drop this all off later."

The door shut and Kara turned back to Frankie. They took seats opposite to each other, Kara staring at the marble bench. Kara started fidgeting with her hands and Frankie began to feel, not worried about the impending conversation but annoyed at how she had been acting lately. She was feeling thoroughly left out, the recent encounter with Winn and James only strengthening her feeling that everyone else knew something that she didn't.

"I think I have some explaining to do," Kara said, not looking up.

"Yeah, I think you might." Frankie snapped. Kara shuddered at the harshness of her voice.

"Frank, I'm sorry. I know Alex and I haven't been treating you the best this past week, and I'm sorry we missed a lot of your calls we were just-"

"Just what, Kara?" Frankie demanded. "You know what? No, I think I'm gonna do some explaining. This past week, I have done nothing out of the ordinary. I've gone to work, chilled on the weekends and tried to talk with you and Alex, but I've been basically ignored by you. I haven't seen you all week."

"Frankie-"

"And I know I'm not as close to you and Alex as you are with each other but this is getting ridiculous. I'm starting to get the feeling that you're hiding something from me. Has it got something to do with Alex's job in the lab? Are you doing some tests that I don't know about because that could be dangerous."

"Frank-"

"You may be from another planet, but I still care about you."

This left Kara speechless. It wasn't anything she didn't already know, but hearing said out loud had that effect on her.

"Frankie, I know. I just... You know what, it doesn't matter. I really, really want to be able to tell you but I just don't think I can." Kara looked pointedly at the ground.

"Wait, are you serious? Kara how-"

"I'm sorry, Frank."

And Frankie was left with a pit in her stomach and a hole in her heart that tore her down to the ground. Something big was going on, the knew that much now, but whatever it was, it was clear that she wasn't trusted enough to be let in on it.

* * *

A/N

Ok well, that happened. Also, I decided to actually put a plan down so now it'll be structured? And by my standards, that was a pretty long chapter. I'm kind of proud of it.

Thank you to EVERYONE who voted on the previous chapters, I really appreciate it!

K bye.


	6. The Articles You Read

_SUPERGIRL: RELATED TO THE MAN OF STEEL?_

 _Media Queen herself, Cat Grant manages to secure an exclusive interview with the infamous 'Girl of Steel' and reveals questions like "Is she connected to Superman?" and "Why only show up now?" Read the full article on pg 8._

Frankie slammed the magazine onto her desk, frustrated with the lack of information held in its stupid articles. She had spent all of her morning trying to figure out what Supergirl's intentions were, what she could be up to and now she was earning some strange looks from her neighbouring co-workers.

She glanced at the growing pile of magazines and papers scattered over her desk and was met with the intimidating eyes of her own sister staring back at her from the covers of almost all of them. Deciding it was time for a break, she grabbed her bag, made absolutelysure her purse was in it and headed downstairs to the coffee shop.

The short walk to the cafe was fairly brisk, but it wasn't overly chilly and she managed to get away with only a sweater and pants. When she opened the door, the familiar smell of coffee and cinnamon all but enveloped her and Frankie couldn't help but smile a little, preparing herself for what she would say to the barista. Turning toward the counter however, she had to stop.

She could see Kara seated at one of the tables, wolfing down a pastry. She wasn't overly surprised, the cafe was right next to Cat Co as well, nor did she feel shocked when Alex was sitting across from her, but all of her attention was drawn to the man standing above them, chatting casually. It was the guy who had been with Winn the day before, _what was his name? James? Yeah_.

Frankie started to move over to them. As she got closer, she caught a glimpse of their conversation.

 _"Not as covert as I would prefer..."_ Alex shot a glare at Kara.

 _"I didn't tell him!"_ She threw back.

 _"Look, it's ok. I can be trusted with a big secret."_

Frankie's stomach dropped when she realised that James now knew more about Kara's doings as Supergirl than she did.

 _"Well, I just hope you'll extend the same courtesy to my sister,"_ Alex sat back in her chair as an awkward silence took over.

At that moment Alex spotted her and waved her over.

"Frankie, hi!" Alex caught the attention of the other two and sounded, _relieved?_

"Alex, Kara hey. And James right?" He nodded. "Nice to see you again. What's going on?"

"We were just, having a chat, ya know."

"Yeah? Sounds nice." Frankie looked at Alex, and Alex looked at Kara, and Kara looked at James and James was looking down. At his shoes. Not meeting anyone's eyes.

Fiddling with her glasses, Kara said, "So, James. What are you doing here?" A very faint blush dusted her cheeks when he looked back at her.

"Oh, well this is the only place in town that serves my favourite drink," He paused for emphasis. "Tea." Frankie looked at him, but he was already back on his shoes, studying them as though he had to write a thesis on them. It was a pretty lame joke, she thought. She still let slip a very small smile at her sisters' reactions. Alex was stone-faced, the face she had when Kara tried to make a stupid joke. And Kara was laughing, (not entirely surprising) but it wasn't her usual laugh. It was her slightly more awkward one, still hard and loud, but not as genuine. Coupled with the tinged hue of her cheeks, and she wasn't even being subtle.

 _Oh yeah, this girl is whipped._

"Well, I'll see you at the office, Kara," James said, still managing to somehow not meet Frankie's eyes.

"Yeah ok, sure." And without another word, he was gone. When he was no longer in sight, Alex and Kara shared a look, and Frankie's stomach dropped. _Oh god,_ she thought. She knew _The Look_. She was very familiar with _The Look._ It was Danvers for _I need to talk to you but there's someone here who I don't want to do it in front of._ It was clear that she wasn't wanted. It was Frankie's ever-present cue to leave.

Not even bothering with an excuse, she simply stated, "Well, this was fun," and turned back to the door, forgetting about her coffee completely. As she made her way out, she felt the frustration rise in her yet again. _What could possibly be going on that they don't want me to know about?_

Just as she was about to reach the door, a voice from behind her stopped her from going any further.

"Frankie, wait!"

She almost didn't stop.

 _Almost._

She turned around and her eyes found Alex and Kara once more, both of them waving her over this time. She slowly walked back towards the table and looked expectantly at Alex.

"We have to tell you something."

"About time..." Frankie muttered, pulling up a chair from an empty nearby table. Sitting down, she looked at her sisters, waiting for them to spill the beans. It was Kara who spoke first.

"I know Alex and I haven't been completely honest with you lately, especially yesterday."

Frankie resisted the urge to cough and instead was silent. Kara didn't notice and continued.

"But honestly? I thought it was for the best. Though, now the time has come for me- for us, to tell you the truth."

Frankie was struck by a sudden thought and couldn't keep it in.

"Wait, is Alex about to come out to me? Alex, are you-"

"No!"

"Why does everyone keep saying that? Alex isn't going to come out. Not today anyway." Kara added with a sideways glance at a bristled Alex. "But what we really want to talk to you about is Supergirl."

Frankie's interest was now sufficiently peaked.

Alex then started talking. "I don't work in a lab." Frankie's head snapped up so quick she could've sworn she felt it crack. "Well, I mean, I kind of do- they have labs-"

"Alex," Kara interrupted.

"Right, so, I work for a top-secret government organization called the DEO. It stands for the Department of Extra-Normal Operations. We work to try and put a stop to alien crime and suspicious activity around the city. Kara has been working with us - as Supergirl-" she added at Frankie's look. "-to increase our ranks and allow us to be the best we can."

Frankie was at a loss. Both of her sisters, going behind her back to save the world from aliens for weeks without telling her. Alex for possibly even-

"How long-"

"Two years"

-two years.

"I just, I don't know what to say."

"It's ok, you don't have to," Kara said, grabbing Frankie's hand tight.

Frankie looked up at Kara and saw a caring, patient look in her eyes. For some reason, it only made her more frustrated. She wasn't even sad, or upset, just annoyed and _frustrated._

If Frankie could pick one word to describe her life so far, it would be frustrating. Full of turmoil and habits sparked by the need to constantly be on top of her life. And just when she thought she was getting somewhere, it had to be ripped away from her by Alex.

 _Selfish._ That's what she was being. That's what her mother would say she was being. _Selfish. Desperately selfish._ Furiously, she tried to swallow her thoughts before they got too out of hand.

She sighed and broke the inevitably awkward silence, saying, "I don't understand. How did it start?"

Alex mumbled something before turning to her glass of water.

"I don't even know that story!" Kara said, turning accusingly to Alex.

"Yeah, well a few weeks ago, you still thought I was working at NCU." Kara's indignant look was suppressed quickly.

"Anyway, so one night during my, well, 'tough years' we'll say,"

"Oh yeah, I remember _'the phase'_ " Kara said, adding quotation marks for emphasis. Alex glared at her again and she lowered her hands slowly, smirking proudly.

"I got arrested. For, a reason I don't want to get into now. But a man - Hank Henshaw - came and saw me. He bailed me out and told me about the DEO. He said I should try working for him and long story short, I love it."

Frankie looked at her hands, then her sister. "So, let me get this straight, you started to work for some random guy that bailed you out of jail, and now you're some kind of secret agent."

Frankie could practically feel Alex's guilt from across the table.

"...Yeah."

"But, how did you know to trust him? He just showed up and told you that he wanted you to work for him and you went? That doesn't sound like the Alex I know."

"The Alex you know now," Alex corrected leaning across the table to grab Frankie's hands which were twisting and untwisting what vaguely resembled a napkin that looked like it would much rather be someplace else.

"It was a risky decision, I'll admit. But it was one of the best choices I've ever made. Hank has become a mentor to me and allowed me to be what I consider to be the best version of me there is. I'm fulfilling a purpose at the DEO. I get to help people and aliens alike. I'm happy there."

"Well, I guess it's not really my choice anyway." She dismissed.

"Frankie-"

"No, it's cool. I'll just, let you get back to your, whatever you do in this organization." She stood abruptly and Kara stood as well.

"Promise me you'll call later," Kara whispered so that Alex couldn't hear.

"Yeah sure," Frankie muttered, picking up her bag and hurrying to the door. This time, no one stopped her.

As she walked out into the street, she couldn't help think about why the fact that her sister being a secret agent was taking this long to process, she's never cared about it up until now. But apparently, when your oldest sister, the girl you looked up to as a child and the woman you look toward as an adult, has been lying to you for two whole years about who she is, it takes a certain toll.

As she walked out the door to the street, she noted only one thing in her brain. _Never leave work for coffee before lunch again._

* * *

The rest of the morning was plagued with newscasts about Supergirl and the exclusive interview she had given with Cat Grant. Frankie couldn't escape it. She had gone from feeling proud of Kara's escapades to having some, weird jealousy in her stomach everytime one was mentioned. Not even lunch could shelter her from the wave of reminders that Kara and Alex were doing things without her. Again.

Picking at her salad, she heard a voice call her name from across the room.

"Frank, dude! Did you hear what Supergirl just did?"

Frankie turned and saw Louise picking her way through disgruntled lawyers and one or two police officers, almost tripping and carrying two smoothies. Technically, she wasn't supposed to be in this break room at all, but the security around the office was ironically slack.

"Armed cyborg thing at a pileup - sorry sir -, 6 cars and a bus! This is cool as _shit_ -"

"Lou, keep your voice down. Start again. What happened?"

Louise finally reached her and took a seat next to Frankie and slid one of the smoothies down to her. She couldn't help smiling at her taking a deep breath, steeling herself.

"There was a massive multi-car pile up on the 340, and there was a bus. The bus driver was trapped inside and when Supergirl arrived, this cyborg dude came and blasted her out of her mind! And-"

"Is she ok?" Frankie blurted out without thinking, mentally slapping herself.

"Why?"

"No, I- I was just wondering..." Frankie tried as a pathetic attempt at a cover-up.

"Well, she seems fine to me I guess. She got right back up. But the cyborg, Frank! It was literally the coolest thing I've ever seen!"

A ping from Frankie's phone made her look down at the new article that had just appeared.

" _'Cyborg 'Reactron' takes down Supergirl.'_ Well Lou," she muttered, not taking her eyes away from her phone. "I think your cyborg has a name."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **It's been too long, I must say. But, happy holidays! I finished school a few weeks ago so I'm getting prepped for next year. Be prepared for my excessively inconsistent updating schedule... oops. I'll try to have something out soon.**

 **K** bye **.**


	7. Party 'Till You Get Attacked by a Cyborg

"So, Maxwell Lord, huh? You know, I never thought he would be one to sacrifice himself for his workers."

 _"Well, that's what everyone is saying happened, and when I got there, everyone told me he was gone."_

"Kara, do we need to find him? He's kind of an asshole," Frankie deadpanned, her eyes rolling slightly.

 _"Don't let Winn hear you say that, Max is his personal hero."_

"Really?"

 _"Yeah,"_

"Then don't tell him I said that."

A few days after the cafe confessional, Frankie still hadn't completely forgiven Alex and Kara but she was no longer simmering with just-under-the-surface frustration. She closed her fingers in a tighter grip on her phone as she walked, swerving to avoid crashing into the people on the packed National City street.

 _"Hey, Frank, Ms Grant's hosting a gala dinner tonight to celebrate Supergirl. You should come."_

"A party. To celebrate Supergirl."

 _"Yeah! There's gonna be food, and drinks. And me, I guess."_ Kara trailed off mid-sentence, her voice dropping out over the phone.

"Sounds fun," Frankie muttered blankly.

 _"I kind of ran out of ideas,"_

"Yeah, I could tell."

 _"Please Frankie?"_ Kara begged. _"It'll be great, I promise. Plus, you might even meet someone extra special."_

Frankie could practically feel Kara's wide grin through the phone.

"Kara, look, I-"

Frankie broke off with a grunt, feeling her body crash into something big and solid.

She straightened up her coat and glanced over to see who she had collided with. It was some guy. Tall, dark hair, completely unfamiliar. He looked her up and down before apologizing and continuing to walk.

"Sorry but, it just sounds like a really bad idea," she continued, swerving violently out of the way of another group of tourists. "I don't even have anything to wear."

 _"I can fix that. Look, I'm busy after work today because I'll be helping Ms Grant set up, but come over at lunch and I'll help you find something."_

Frankie sighed. Kara had made plans. She was bound to them now. There was no going back.

"Fine."

* * *

When she arrived at CatCo that afternoon, she felt a vibration coming from her phone. Looking down, she saw a text from Kara; _meet us in room 6B. don't bring anyone._

Shoving down her immediate thoughts of more, _suspicious_ , activities, she hurried quickly to the elevator.

Once it arrived, she stepped in alone, trying not to remind herself of her problem with elevators. She wasn't scared, more apprehensive. They moved pretty damn fast. She reached over to the floor buttons and instead of reaching for level eight like she normally would, she stopped at the button for level six.

After about thirty seconds of bad jazz music, the floor stopped shaking, and the doors crept open. She hurried gladly into the unfamiliar corridor and looked around, spotting a door at one end that was slightly hidden behind a wall.

Jumping into step, she reached the door and caught sight of a plaque that read; _Ed Flaherty: Actuaries_

She could hear voices from the other side and knew that something was going on inside, but this was where Kara had said to meet her.

The moment she pushed open the door, she spotted four people crowded around a desk of extremely high tech looking equipment. Kara, Winn, James and, _Alex?_

The room smelled heavily of musk and looked worn. The paint was chipped in some places, there were cobwebs in a back corner and two of the couches were covered in protective plastic.

"Frankie, glad you could make it," Kara said, looking up as the door opened.

"Um, what's happening?"

Nobody answered directly, but Alex gave her a spearing look that would've sent a heated panic through her bones if they weren't sisters.

"In regards to Reactron," she said, turning pointedly back to the computer she was sitting in front of. "I used the DEO satellite to scan the highway that you fought him on, and I was able to isolate the nuclear signature of his weapon system. It's powered by Thorium two thirty-two, which can only be found in one place."

She tapped some keys and brought up a diagram of the place in question.

Frankie had no idea what they were talking about or why Alex was mad at her all of a sudden, so she tried her best to melt slightly into the background. She caught Winn's eye and he gestured her over.

Kara, who was closest to Alex, read off one of the screens.

"Bakerline Nuclear Power Plant."

"Oh, I remember that," Winn said, raising himself on his tip-toes slightly to see around James. "Terrorists tried to start a full-on meltdown like, five years ago."

The name _Bakerline Meltdown_ struck something in the deep recesses of Frankie's memory, but she couldn't quite pinpoint where it came from.

"But Superman stopped it."

Frankie's mind whirred sputteringly into action as she suddenly remembered what the Bakerline Meltdown actually was. The story had played non-stop on the news, and the more experienced people she worked with still talked about it in the break room.

"He prevented the reactor from exploding, right?" Frankie asked, crossing her arms.

"Saved millions of people." Alex nodded, not looking in Frankie's direction. "But two reactor engineers were killed when the facility was flooded with radiation. Ben and Alissa Crawl. They were married."

Some kind of facial recognition software popped onto the screens, and they all showed one identical model of a bald man. To Frankie, his mannequin-like appearance and low-resolution was zero help, but to Kara, it seemed to hold every answer she'd ever needed.

"Ben Crawl is Reactron."

How she could've possibly known that, Frankie had no idea. Deciding to go along with it, she said, "So you're saying he somehow survived the radiation exposure?"

"Must've," Winn muttered, shoving a hand into his pocket.

"That's why he hates my cousin. He blames him for the death of his wife." Kara's tone betrayed a faint hint of sadness, one akin to finding out that your seventh favourite tv show has just gotten cancelled. One that Frankie believed was warranted.

"But Superman still managed to prevent an American Chernobyl."

To Frankie, James was a cinch to read. His face was expressive, he wasn't amazing at hiding his body language, and she knew when people were lying. She was good at it. But his casual lean against the wall, 'trying too hard to hard to be cool' vibe was confusing. He was clearly trying to impress somebody, especially since this was the second time he'd brought up Superman in the space of a minute.

Then Frankie realised.

This guy was Jimmy _fucking_ Olsen from the Daily Planet, Clark Kent's best friend.

 _No wonder._

Winn stood watching her for a second, then said, "Chernobyl. That gives me an idea about how we might find Crawl."

He shooed Alex out of her spot and started typing. After a minute of slightly awkward silence involving Alex avoiding Frankie's eyes in apparent and unexplained anger, Kara out of shame and James, most likely out of pride.

"This might take a while," Winn said, looking pointedly up at Kara.

Alex stood up.

"If there are any big updates, let me know immediately."

She spun and hurried out of the room. James quickly followed with no explanation.

"Ms Grant is probably freaking out. I should go." Kara turned to leave, but before she reached the door, she turned back to Frankie.

"Hey, I know this isn't exactly what we planned but-"

"It's ok. I'll have something at home, I'm sure."

Kara shook her head, watching as Frankie's heart cracked just the tiniest bit more.

"Frankie, I just don't want to do this to you again."

"You won't be. I promise."

"You sure?"

Frankie was good at knowing when people were lying. She was good at reading people. It also meant that she knew how to keep something secret, especially from Kara.

"Yeah," Frankie sighed.

Kara flashed an apologetic smile and was out the door in a flash.

"And then there were two," Frankie muttered, standing in the dishevelled office.

Aside from the buzzing and whirring of all the computers, the room was silent. Not awkward, but silent. That was until Winn spoke.

"Hey, you don't really have to be anywhere do you?" He asked, swivelling in his chair to face her.

"Nope," Frankie said, popping the 'p' slightly. "Cleared out my lunch break."

"Would you wanna maybe stay? I never have anything to do here anyway and I didn't really mean everyone had to leave."

She looked over at him again, his fingers working deftly to loosen the tie around his neck.

"Yeah, sure."

She pulled up a seat next to him and watched him type out commands that to her seemed like nonsense, but to him probably made more sense than English.

"So what are you actually doing?"

"Right, so when James said 'American Chernobyl', it made me think about what happened over there." He paused, looking at her out of the corner of his eye. "How much do you remember from that?"

"Not a lot."

"Ok so there was this huge nuclear explosion in Pripyat in Ukraine, fifty-thousand people evacuated, the entire town is completely abandoned now. But when scientists and hazmat workers went back to look for signs of radiation and stuff, there was this black mould they'd never seen before." Winn's face lit at the chance to explain it all again to someone else.

"It was all full of melanin which meant that it essentially could've protected them from solar and ultraviolet radiation, which it thrives on. If I could find that same black fungus here in National City, then that could point to where abouts Crawl is, and therefore where he's keeping Lord."

Frankie sat blankly for a minute, trying to understand what he had just said. Eventually, it dawned on her what he was doing and she tried her best to answer intelligently.

"So, you're saying that because this fungus has only ever been found at the sight of a massive radiation eruption, then there's a very high chance that if we find it here, it's at a sight of high radiation."

"It's a long shot, but it's worth a try. Especially since it's the only lead anybody has."

Winn was grinning like an idiot, so Frankie smiled as well, whatever tension from Kara and Alex sliding out of her body like a river.

The rest of the time passed with ease even though it actually wasn't that long and conversation flowed evenly _("Why does this room smell like a person died in it?" Frankie asked. "Because I'm pretty sure they did, I can't exactly remember.")_ , and eventually, they landed on the topic of the gala.

"So you're going tonight huh?" Winn asked, eyes still on the screens.

"I think so. I'll have to look pretty hard for something to wear though. I may have been lying when I said I had something at hand."

"I hope to see you there then. It might be a bit of a pain in the ass to get ready for but it could be fun."

"Everyone seems pretty stressed about it."

"Yeah well, Ms Grant didn't decide she wanted to do it until the start of this week so everyone's kind of been running over the walls to get it done for her."

Frankie looked over to see Winn staring at her. He quickly looked down again and she was reminded of James, constantly avoiding eye contact with her as though she was Medusa. But this time, Winn looked back up again and Frankie could see him open his mouth to say something. But before he could, there was a ping from the computer.

"Holy shit. To be honest, I didn't think it would actually work."

Frankie spun her chair around and faced the computer as well.

"Where is he?"

"Junkyard, sixty miles south of this room." He pulled out his phone and shot a text to James, informing him of the update. "Kara'll get there soon," he said before standing and grabbing his bag.

"I should get going," Frankie said quickly, rushing to the door.

"Wait," Winn called out before she could leave. "Take this," he said, scribbling something on a piece of paper before handing it to her and sidling out the door behind her. Curious, she looked at the scrawled note on the paper.

 _Throw me a text. We should really hang out more_.

It was followed by a number. Frankie smiled to herself before stepping down the corridor and back towards the elevator.

* * *

Pushing open the door to her apartment, Frankie saw that it was empty.

The entire entrance was dark because she didn't have the money to leave lamps on, so as she moved further into the kitchen, she flicked on one light after another until the entire living room was full of light.

She knew she only had a limited amount of time to get ready, so she hurried into her closet and dug through the surprising amount of pale grey sweaters she owned until she pulled up a dress that she hadn't worn in years.

The dark blue bodice and flowy skirt that just barely touched the floor would be perfect. With a suitable pair of heels, she would be able to pull it off. The only drawback with the dress was that if she wore it to the gala, she couldn't wear it to another formal event for at least as long as it had been since the last time.

"Screw it," she whispered.

Throwing it on and quickly curling her hair, she rushed on a pair of black heels and flew out the door at a rate Kara would be proud of.

Hailing a taxi, she soon arrived outside the convention centre the gala would be taking place in.

Tugging the back of her dress into place, she stumbled out onto the street, her body alive with fiery nerves.

Everyone going into the huge hall was dressed just as nice as she was, but yet she still couldn't help but be slightly stressed.

Frankie didn't much enjoy parties, there were too many people, the music was always too loud, and someone always ended up naked. But granted, this wasn't one of the few college parties she'd been to, so there was at least a chance that this could be better.

So she held her head up high and tried her damn best to not trip as she walked up the steps.

Her phone buzzed and she looked down and saw a message from Alex;

 _ **Things with reactron didn't quite go to plan. Try and keep an eye on Kara tonight, please.**_

Frankie's mouth twisted slightly with confusion.

 _Whatdyou mean? did She go after him?_

 ** _Yeah, but he put up a fight. She's ok, I just don't want her getting into any trouble._**

Suddenly remembering Alex's attitude that afternoon, Frankie didn't hesitate to send a strongly-worded message straight back, carefully watching the path in front of her.

 _why were u so mad at me today? i havent DOne anyhitng wrong to youuu_

 _ **I can't talk atm. Just watch Kara.**_

Frowning, Frankie looked up and found herself being thrust into the, _very,_ extravagantly decorated hall. A quick scan of the room confirmed that Kara hadn't arrived yet, Lord was there and safe, and everyone in the room was rich.

She flagged down a passing hostess who was, _dressed as Supergirl,_ and whisked a glass of wine off of the tray. She'd only been legal for a few years, but sometimes the occasion called for a little more exquisite.

Turning to the entrance again, she spotted Kara shuffling in, looking extremely awkward. Frankie immediately rushed over, pulling the unsuspecting Kryptonian into a tight hug.

"Kara, are you alright?" She asked when Kara pulled away hurriedly.

"Yeah, I'm just, very late. I've got to find Ms Grant."

Spotting said women strolling pointedly over, Frankie muttered, "You won't have to wait long," before she retreated to the back of the room with her glass and left Kara alone with her boss.

Watching the couples and groups around the room was more entertaining than it should've been and she soon found herself subconsciously searching for Winn. Spotting him dancing with Kara, she had to laugh. He was making massive heart eyes at her and she was completely oblivious. Pity her sister was an unobservant millennial. Winn was a nice guy.

 _Uh oh, trouble in paradise,_ she noted as James came over to the pair and all but pushed Winn out of the way. _Rude_ , she muttered and saw him step away, looking mildly (and rightly) offended. He scanned the room, looking for someone when he spotted her and made his way over. She quickly busied herself with her glass so it didn't seem as though she was watching at him.

He arrived by her side and simply stood, not talking.

"What happened?"

"I'm not entirely sure."

"Fair enough."

Clearly trying to change the subject, he asked, "Got your eye on anyone?"

"I've only been here for ten minutes, Winn. Not yet."

He laughed before leaning back against the wall. He turned slightly to her and smiled.

"You look really nice," he complimented, eyeing the sequins.

She looked at his bowtie and found she appreciated the slightly nerdy style he had going on.

"Thanks. You look great too, you know."

He grinned back at her, showing off slight dimples she didn't know he had. He suddenly made a face she didn't really know how to describe and he sighed a little.

"I've gotta use the little men's room."

Frankie frowned.

"I think it's the little boy's room."

"Eh, same thing." He said, before walking off towards the bathrooms.

Frankie was just considering when the most appropriate time to leave would be before she was approached by someone else. A stranger.

He came over so casually that, for a second she wondered if she knew him. She then realised he was probably just being smooth. She sighed, ready to deal with whatever he had to say when she started slightly. She did know him. _Kinda_. She'd run into him earlier that day when she was talking to Kara on the phone.

"Hi," he said when he reached her.

 _Wow, such a charmer,_ she thought, placing her glass on a nearby table.

"I recognised you from this morning. I'm sorry for bumping into you."

"Yeah," she said, only slightly awkwardly. "I didn't really get a chance to apologize."

"It's all good. I just have one question."

"Yeah, what's that?"

"Dance with me?"

Normally Frankie would never go for guys this forward, at least in this kind of setting, but something about him was different.

And how often was she going to be asked to dance by a rich guy at a charity gala.

"Sure," she said, allowing him to take her hand, letting him have his fun.

The jazzy song that had been playing ended just as they stepped onto the floor and, _inevitably_ , a slow dance number started up again.

 _How fitting,_ she thought, letting herself be plunged into the experience of dancing with a stranger. They talked softly for a while and she managed to learn very basic things about him.

His name was Brad Coopers, he was from Metropolis, and he was one of CatCo's top investors, hence why he was at the party.

She could sense Kara staring at her behind her back and almost laughed out loud. She was allowed to have fun sometimes too. Not everyone had two boys fighting over them at once.

Just as the song was coming to a close, there was a deafening crash and the ceiling of the hall seemed to cave in. Brad's grip on her tightened ever so slightly and he pushed her backwards.

People screamed and ran out of the way, dodging debris and glass.

A man landed on the edge of the makeshift dancefloor, covered in metal armour.

He was unmistakable from every single article published about him. Every hair on Frankie's neck stood on end as she caught sight of Kara, straightening up to her full height.

It was Reactron.

"Where is Supergirl?"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I sure do have a habit of starting chapters with dialogue. A lot. And remember how I said a while ago that I thought 1000 words was long? Yeah that's not true anymore. Very clearly.**

 **Aside from the point, I've watched The Greatest Showman three times in cinemas in a week and twice at home. I may have a problem. The soundtrack is just too beautiful.**

 **Well, on that lovely note.**

 **K bye.**


	8. The Kara Danvers Pout

"Where is Supergirl?"

Through the panic of the room, it was hard to find where anyone was. Vaguely, she spotted Winn run out from a hallway somewhere to her left, and Kara and James standing right in front of Reactron. While everyone around her ran, she stayed put, only backing up to give Kara and everyone else some space. Kara said something to James and ran off, presumably to change into her suit. Someone stopped next to her and she looked over to see Brad, watching the cyborg with weary eyes.

"You should go," she warned him. "It's not safe."

"Then why are you still here?" He said, looking at her. Unable to answer him, she just grabbed his wrist and yanked him against a wall. Reactron had spotted Lord and was on the warpath.

When Reactron reached him, Lord raised his arms in an attempt at a peace gesture, saying "I don't suppose fixing your suit earns me a hall pass?"

 _So that's what he did_ , Frankie thought to herself, watching Kara's retreating figure. Just as she was about to disappear, Frankie caught a burst of speed and watched Kara fly back into the room, now dressed more appropriately. Throwing Reactron into a poster of herself, she looked at Lord, then backwards at Frankie.

"Get somewhere safe." She said, and Lord scurried off.

"I am sorry for what happened to you," she said, addressing the cyborg in a louder voice. "But you're going to jail."

"One day I will. But you won't be alive to see it." Raising his arms, he shot a burst of lightning towards Kara and she flew back, landing roughly on her feet. He advanced on her again, his whole body seeming to light up in yellow sparks before sending a second round of lightning at Kara, though she was ready this time. She threw up her cape and the sparks were deflected off of it. Instead of dying when they hit the material however, they rebounded off and hit the base of a giant concrete pillar. Which disconnected from the ceiling and came soaring down towards the floor. The pillar came crashing down and Frankie quickly looked to check that there was no one underneath. But of course, by the fate of the overwatchers, a one Mr Winn Schott was standing perfectly in its course of destruction. She kept herself from crying out by grabbing Brad's hand tight. Kara saw the slight problem she had created and sped over, catching the pillar just before it hit Winn. However she was now in more of a dilemma because she couldn't lower the pillar, and Reactron was approaching quickly, heating up his lightning making machines.

"Hey bro! You know who I am? Jimmy Olsen."

Frankie both sighed and felt her breath hitch at the same time. _Only Jimmy Olsen would call a vicious cyborg 'bro' while wearing a tuxedo._

"I'm the closest thing Superman has to a best friend. You wanna see him hurt? Killing me would do that." Frankie looked back to the cyborg who was now, _sufficiently not focusing on Kara. They've really got the hang of the whole 'saving superheroes' thing, haven't they?_ James turned and ran from the room, Reactron following suit quickly. Winn hastily rolled out from under the pillar and Kara dropped it carefully. They shared a look of worry and Kara stood up, searching the room for something. Her mouth was moving, though Frankie couldn't hear what she was saying and assumed she was talking to Alex.

Winn got up shakily and brushed off his suit, just as Kara started walking over to a bust of some old guy that was placed carefully on a pedestal. Looking around, Winn spotted Frankie and his shoulders sagged in relief as he carefully made his way over to her again.

From across the room, Kara's eyes lit up and she melted away some of the (probably very expensive) statue and reached her hand in. When she pulled it out again, it was covered in molten metal of some description and she flew up and out of the hole Reactron had smashed in the ceiling.

Winn was still a while away so Frankie turned to Brad and let go of the hand she didn't know she still held.

"Are you ok?" He asked, looking her up and down.

"Yeah, I'm fine. How about you?" He chose not to answer and instead pulled out a chequebook and flipped to one of the blank pages at the back, ripping one out and writing something down.

"You just, carry that around with you?" She asked, gesturing to the pad of paper.

"You never know when you might need to make a million dollar payment," he joked, folding the paper and handing it to her. "Take this." He said. "In case something else happens." He then walked off, following the remaining people in the room and out the door.

By that point, Winn had found his way over and Frankie quickly pocketed the paper.

"Is everything good?" She asked as he stopped next to her.

"I think so, but I'll live." She smiled, laughing as he took her arm and led her out of the room.

She hung around a bit, Winn claimed he was waiting for a ride from a friend and didn't really want to have to ask them to come any earlier. She hadn't wanted to leave him alone, and he hadn't protested.

She wasn't quite sure where Kara had gone, presumably back to the DEO with Alex to clean up or whatever she did after fights. She spotted James though, coming out of an alleyway completely unscathed.

He looked over and was about start coming to her end of the street, before he recognised Winn, turned red, and walked back in the opposite direction. She chose to ignore his strange behaviour (if you could even call it that, he was always strange around her) and turned back to Winn. Eventually, an Uber arrived (his 'friend'), and he left, prompting Frankie to hail a cab and head home herself.

* * *

In the taxi ride home, she got a text from Louise.

 **Dude, are u ok?!**

Smiling, she responded quickly.

 _Yeah, I'm all good._

 _Also how did you know_

 **Because I follow all the news about Reactron. You were very clearly at that gala, man.**

 _Glad to know you're updated._

 _It wasn't anything big, just a few threats and some lightning._

 **It wasn't anything big?! Right, sure.**

 **And, also, I managed to pull a few strings.**

 _Lou what did you do?_

 **You've got the day off tomorrow.**

 _Wait really? How?_

 **Trade secret.**

 **But if anyone asks, your great grandma just died ;)**

 _You're the best._

 **I know.**

Just as she was about to put her phone away, another text came through, this time from Kara.

 **My place, asap. We're having a sister night, no exceptions.**

Frankie felt her chest warm, and she looked up to the driver.

"Do you think we could maybe head down to the Heath street complex? There's a bit of a change of plan."

The driver just nodded and kept going. Kara's apartment was only a little further along the same route, so Frankie didn't feel very bad about asking if they could switch destinations.

When she climbed out of the taxi in front of Kara's apartment, she spotted Alex's bike and knew she was already here. She couldn't understand how Alex could ride motorbikes, the mere idea terrified Frankie. The high speeds and the fact that drivers had a larger blind spot to bikes both in their mirrors and in their minds was enough for her to steer very clear of them.

Coming to a stop outside the apartment, she knocked carefully on the door and it was opened by Alex, who gave her a big grin and a big hug and pushed her into the loft, taking her bag as she went.

"Frankie!" Kara called from the couch, where she was devouring pot stickers. "Come on, I got us food." Frankie would have joined her had she not looked down and realised she was still in her dress. Kicking off her heels, she strolled straight into Kara's room shouting, "I'm raiding your closet!"

"Take what you want." She yelled back. Frankie looked at the array of options in front of her. Kara really loved comfy clothes and they were basically exactly the same size anyway. Frankie had always taken pride in the fact that she was taller than Alex.

She came out of Kara's room dressed in sweats and an oversized jumper because what else, plopped down on the couch next to Alex and grabbed a slice of pizza from the box in front of her. Light conversation floated easily between the three of them, admittedly mostly between Alex and Kara but Frankie was content to just listen. They talked about pretty much everything under the sun and eventually landed on men.

"So, Kara. No James Olsen?"

Frankie's head whipped up at Alex's question, and she almost choked on the piece of pepperoni in her mouth.

"No, not tonight," Kara said dismissively, repositioning herself on the chair. Clearly trying to change the subject, she said, "Pass me that last potsticker."

Frankie laughed out loud and Alex glared at Kara. "Uh, no." Kara simply pulled her face into the infamous 'Kara Danvers Pout™' and stared at Alex through big puppy dog eyes.

"She's pulling out the big guns, Alex," Frankie warned, looking back to her.

Alex wasn't impressed however. Figures. She'd always been fairly immune to The Pout™.

"That one is mine." When Kara didn't stop looking, Alex continued, "You've had _four_."

"If that potsticker is not in my mouth in two seconds, I will melt your face."

Alex looked desperately to Frankie.

"What if Frank wanted it, huh? You'd let her have it."

"Do you want it?" Kara asked.

"No, not really."

Alex glared at Frankie. "You're not helping much."

"Sorry."

Alex looked back at Kara, who still hadn't given up. After a heated staring contest that Frankie was sure was going to end in laser vision, Alex picked up the container without breaking eye contact and thrust it at Kara.

"I hope you get fat."

"Not on this planet." Kara began devouring the dumpling.

When she was finished being completely disgusting, she turned to Frankie and asked, "So, Frank. Did you see someone you liked earlier?"

Frankie felt her cheeks warm and she kept her eyes determinedly down on the pretence of finishing her slice. She knew that Kara knew the answer to that question (judging by the intense smirk that she wore), but she preferred to let Kara have her fun. Alex was too smart for that though and saw through it immediately.

"Frankie!" Frankie cringed at the noise and slowly looked up to see Alex beaming at her. "I want details right now."

When Frankie didn't answer, Kara took over. "He's very handsome. Tall, brown hair. _Rich_."

If she could reach, she would have slapped Kara, even though it wouldn't have hurt at all.

"That's not it, _Kara_."

"Holy crap there's more?" Alex was practically jumping out of her skin with excitement.

"He's nice as well. He stayed back after Reactron left and made sure I was ok and gave me his number." Alex was basically quivering by this point, and Kara had her hand over her mouth to stop herself squealing.

"Jeez, you two are more excited than I am."

"You can't blame us," Kara said.

"Yeah, you haven't gone on a date in ages."

"Thanks, Alex."

"She's telling the truth."

"Ok when you two are finished discussing my love life, can we move on please?" But the other two weren't having it.

"What if they get married and have _babies?_ "

"They can grow old together!"

"We could call them- wait what's his name?"

"Brad."

"BRANKIE!"

"Ok, you two are done."

They finally stopped laughing. Eventually. When it was over, Alex reached into her bag and pulled something out.

"So, guess what I picked up on my way here." Brandishing a copy of Cat Co's latest edition, she glanced at Kara.

"Did you actually read the article because she said some horrible things about me."

"Very well crafted horrible things." Kara looked at Alex, clearly upset.

"But underneath that seething destain, she respects you."

"Really?"

"Mhm. Supergirl, I mean. Her assistant though, she couldn't give a rip about."

Frankie laughed. Kara caught up a pillow and threw it hard at Alex.

"Oh, god."

"Right in the face!"

"You two, I swear."

"Really though, you should be proud of yourself."

"Yeah, you're doing things not even Superman could do."

"Well, I may not need Superman to be a hero, but I will always need you two. _Both of you._ "

* * *

 _"I knew you would have this reaction. I know you think it was a stupid award mother, but I won it."_

Kara turned to her boss's office. Ms Grant was on the phone with someone, presumably her mum.

 _"I don't ask for very much."_

Kara carefully peered around the corner, using her super hearing to not so decently listen into the conversation.

 _"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realise it was such a burden being a grandmother."_

 _Wow, her mum really doesn't seem to care at all._

Looking back into the glass office, Kara saw Ms Grant drop her phone onto her desk and sigh.

"Keira!"

Kara jumped and ran into the office. Winn moved out from behind her, trying to look as though he hadn't been listening the whole time.

"Yes?"

"Get me a salad for lunch. I don't care what kind as long as it has a cheeseburger on top."

She wrote it down, not paying attention to the strange request, instead focusing on getting to the bottom of Ms Grant's problem.

"And, may I say Ms Grant, congratulations on the Segal Prize, that's huge!" Kara exclaimed, making sure to exaggerate the 'huge'.

"Well, I hope not, considering they're going to have to mail it to me. I won't be attending the ceremony."

"But this is the first year you beat Lois Lane,"

"And as much as I would love to rub it in her annoyingly freckled button nose," Ms Grant said, moving around the desk and to the coffee table in front of it. "I don't have anyone to watch Carter."

"Did you fire another nanny?"

"No!" She sighed. "Ella broke her leg storing my summer sandals."

"And your mum-"

"She is living down to my expectations by prioritising her career over my own. Does your mother give a damn about your career?"

Kara reached up and fiddled with her glasses.

"Um, well, she's not really around."

"Salad. Burger rare. Go." Ms Grant stood up and Kara took that as her cue to leave and started walking to the glass doors. Just before she reached them however, she was struck with an idea.

"If you wanted, I could watch Carter overnight?"

Ms Grant put a hand on her hip and stared at her. "What do you want?"

Kara, affronted, looked down a little bit. "You know how sometimes people just wanna, help other people?"

"Oh, I see. So you think that if you do me this favour then I will owe you something." Kara began to shake her head but was cut off when Ms Grant continued. "This is the first time I've seen this quality in you Keira. I love it. Huh, I didn't know you had it in you."

Kara smiled. "Well, this award is important to you, so it's important to me."

"Maybe you will get that promotion someday. My son, Carter. He uh, well he's not a normal boy, thank God. He's clever and curious and like most gifted children, he can be shy. Reserved. He needs-" She paused. "Special attention."

"Do not worry Ms Grant. He wouldn't be safer with Supergirl."

"Oh, now it's just annoying." She dismissed. She turned and walked back to her desk.

Kara spun around and began walking back out to her own desk, one thought plain in her mind.

 _What have I gotten myself into?_

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **Fun fact, while writing this chapter, at one point I spelt "Schott" as "Schoott" and now I can't get it out of my head.**

 **What's James' deal you may ask? Hah, well I'm not going to tell you. You didn't ask I'm now hearing you say? Well** _ **shit.**_

 **K bye.**


	9. Love is a Battlefield

"Yeah, uh. Can I get a Caesar salad and a beef burger? Rare, if possible please."

Turning around from the counter, Kara spotted James and a woman she hadn't seen before. Her stomach fell. Of course, he was on a date. She didn't control him. It was his decision. _But he's looking very uncomfortable,_ she noted. The girl was very pretty. And stylish with short, curled brown hair and a studded leather jacket.

She didn't have to use her super hearing to find out what they were talking about.

"Lucy,"

"Ok. I also missed you. Am I not allowed to miss you?"

He swallowed, reaching for his bag.

"I have to go. My boss is, headed out of town and she left me to run point on digital marketing so."

"Well, you always wanted more responsibility."

"I wanted a lot of things, Lucy."

They stood up and Kara quickly turned back to the counter so she didn't look as though she was staring at him.

"Salad and burger for Kara?"

She jumped slightly and thanked the young woman who gave her the bag. It was warm and she knew she should get it back to Ms Grant, but she couldn't resist finding out who Lucy was.

"Jimmy, you were right. I didn't come here for the case. I came here for you."

He looked down, awkward at the blunt nature of Lucy.

"Ok, well, um, I'll give you a ring if I'm not too slammed at work.

She nodded, turning and walking past Kara and out the door. James stood and watched her leave before starting to walk out himself.

"That sounds like a woman who knows what she wants," Kara said, grabbing her Noonan's bag and walking over next to James. "I, I used my regular hearing on that."

He looked back to the door and shook his head again. "All she wants is to win everything. Win every case, every argument. And now she wants to win me."

Kara kind of understood that. Frankie was similar, although she was pretty sure that Frankie wasn't trying to 'win' her, as James had put it. But that wasn't important at that moment.

"Because you broke up with her?"

James looked at her strangely. He bit his lip and turned his head to the side.

"Uh... I moved away. After she dumped me."

Kara scoffed. She hadn't meant to, it just came out. "How, how did-? How is that even possible?"

She swallowed. _Real smooth, Supergirl._

"She's obsessed with her career. And I was a distraction."

"Well you're, you're totally not a distraction."

She tried to laugh off her sudden and fairly obvious awkwardness. A thought flew into her mind and she stopped.

"Just so we're on the same page and for absolutely no other reason, Lucy...?"

"Lane."

There it was. Lucy Lane. Lois Lane's little sister. James had dated Lucy Lane and now she wanted him back. Kara knew from media and the 'encounter' (if you could call it that) just then that Lucy was very headstrong, and got what she wanted. It was the same with Lois. She stood no chance.

A sudden rumble pulled her out of her thoughts. The cafe was literally shaking and she was still thinking about a guy. Her hands flew to her glasses and she prized them off, staring through the walls of the cafe.

To her, using her x-ray vision felt as though she was peeling apart the layers of the world around her and now was no different. Miles away, she saw a building with a big, gaping, crumbling hole in the side. There had clearly been some kind of explosion.

"Earthquake?"

"No, a bomb."

She flew up and out of the room, thrusting her bags at James.

Reaching the building, she spotted the obvious explosion site. She flew under a ledge and started pushing up against the building. It was heavy, almost too heavy and she knew that if she had to hold on much longer, it wouldn't last. In the corner of her eyes, she spotted something else hovering in the trees to her right. She ignored it, the building was more important at that moment.

Looking around, she spotted cracks in the metal beams under the split concrete. She felt her eyes heat up and hot streams spilled out of them, effectively melding the metal back together.

She turned and did the same to the other side, then felt the weight be lifted off of her arms. The building was no longer crumbling and she cautiously tested if it was safe to let go, and when she was satisfied, flew up to put out the fire that was coming from the explosion.

"Our team found these fragments from the bomb." Alex walked into the DEO, carrying a plastic zip-lock bag full of metal.

"While we were there, we spotted a drone smashed on the ground nearby. You didn't see anything?" She asked, turning to Kara. Looking back, Kara remembered the object in the trees. Swearing under her breath, she said, "Yeah, I saw something, that must have been it."

Ignoring her tone, Alex continued. "Well, the bomb and drone were both made with the exact same technology." Alex's director and mentor, Hank Henshaw, came up behind them, overhearing their conversation.

"So you're saying that whoever was behind the bombing was also behind the drone."

"Yes. And I think I may have a lead." Alex turned and walked to the table behind her, putting her tablet down so everyone could see what was on the screen. A familiar leering face stared up at Kara from the table. All three of them stared at the sharp face of the CEO for a second longer before Kara said what they were all thinking.

"Maxwell Lord?"

"Yeah." Alex pulled some complicated diagrams onto the screen and looked up to face the director. "He's using some form of an advanced fibre optics relay system. It's not even on the market yet. And it was developed by Lord Technologies." Hank, or 'Director Henshaw' as Kara had been informed she was required to call him, stepped back, nodding.

"Let's pay Maxwell Lord a visit."

"How? You can't just walk in as DEO agents."

Hank ignored her and kept walking.

"We won't." Alex pulled out her ID badge. She held it up in front of Kara, showing her the inside of the leather case. It was pretty standard issue, Kara thought, with DEO written at the top, a name, date of birth, city, address and a hideous photo. _Sorry Alex._ But then Alex pressed a button on the side of the leather ( _How?_ ) and the badge morphed. DEO was replaced with FBI, the dates changed slightly, and, most noticeably, the photo was replaced with one, not entirely better.

"That's cool." She said, staring at the badge.

They started walking back to the entrance, allowing for light conversation to filter between them.

"I met James' ex."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Turns out she's Lois Lane's little sister."

"Really?"

"Mhm."

"Well, you know as good as any that little sisters aren't always synonymous with their elders."

"Ok, yeah well. I've gotta say, she certainly lives up to the name. She smart, gorgeous. Hell, even I want to date her."

Alex stopped and turned around to face Kara.

"Ok, but can she fly?"

"You know, I wouldn't be surprised."

Alex scoffed, frowning as they neared the doors.

"So how did they break up?"

"She broke up with him. Then he moved out here."

Alex looked confused. "Something doesn't add up here. She broke up with him, then he moved all the way out to National City from Metropolis to get away from her. I don't think he's gonna wanna date her again any time soon."

Kara looked at Alex with a comically pained look on her face.

"Kara, come on. You're acting like a lovestruck thirteen-year-old."

Sighing, Kara said, "That reminds me, I'm supposed to be looking after Carter today."

"Who's Carter?"

"Ms Grant's son. I'm supposed to pick him up from school at three."

Pulling out her phone, Alex grinned.

"What? What's so funny?"

"Kara, it's half past three."

" _SHIT!"_

Kara couldn't win. Carter hadn't talked since they'd arrived at the office. In the transportation process, she had managed to nearly out herself, Alex and the DEO, and managed to create an unbreakable awkward silence.

Carter hadn't said a word other than 'no' and Kara was getting frustrated. _How the hell am I supposed to connect with a thirteen-year-old boy?_ After another round of "Can I get you anything?" and "Is there anything you'd like?", one of the monitors suddenly became inexplicably audible above the rest, and Carter got a good look at Supergirl on the screen.

"Supergirl." He said in awe, standing to get a better look.

Laughing at the coincidence that this was the one thing he had talked about in half an hour, she asked, "You know Supergirl?" When he nodded, she continued, unable to help herself. "Yeah, she's pretty cool."

"I didn't say she was pretty." He defended, looking down in shame.

"I didn't say you said she was pretty."

"Oh."

Trying to stop herself from laughing, she asked, "Carter, do you maybe have a little crush on Supergirl?"

Before he could answer, (and it was probably for the best), Winn swooped in and replied for him.

"You've got good taste kid," He said, coming up next to Kara and leaning casually on his desk.

"This is my friend Winn."

"You're a Supergirl fan, huh?" Carter nodded, smiling.

"You know, I know her."

Carter's jaw dropped open.

"No you don't!"

"No you _don't._ " Kara stared at him pointedly, shaking her head slightly. Winn quickly got the message and backtracked as fast as he could.

"I-uh, well, you know, I feel like I know her. Cause she's always there for people, you know. She's helping out, savin' the day. Those who, need saving..."

" _Yeah._ "

"Especially those who," Winn started leaning sideways so he could see into Ms Grant's office. "Have broken staplers."

Kara heard the snapping sound before she saw it. Following Winn's gaze, she spotted James hunched over Ms Grant's desk, punching the crap out of her plastic stapler. She ran quickly forward into the glass panelled room.

"Woah, hey. What did the stapler ever do to you?"

"Sorry, I'm just- trying to- get these papers stapled." Each pause in his sentence was punctuated with a jab to the stapler, none of them succeeding in keeping his papers together.

Feeling her phone go off in her pocket, she fished it out and read Alex's name on the screen.

"Sorry, I've gotta take this. Good luck with that." She turned, swiping and holding the phone to her ear.

"Hey, what's going on?" She said as she exited the office.

"Kara, there is a bomb about to go off in an hour."

"I'm on my way."

Kara turned, throwing her phone onto her desk, completely ready to strip down to her suit. She stopped. _Carter._

She swerved around and strolled as quickly as she could without sacrificing her causal demeanour to Winn's desk.

"Winn, I need you to watch Ms Grant's son," Kara said, stopping at his computer.

"What?" He said, whipping around to face her. "I'm not good with kids!"

"You eat cereal for dinner and your desk is covered with toys." She gestured to the plastic figures that littered his desk.

"They are not toys, they are adult collectables."

Kara sighed. "Just call Frankie, she's got the day off and she's surprisingly good with kids. My phone's on my desk."

Kara ran out of the room, Winn staring after her.

"Yeah, ok yeah. I got it." He said out loud, running a hand through his hair. He turned, looking to Carter, who sat at a spare desk near Ms Grant's office. He was on his phone, not really paying attention.

Panicking, he stood and made his way over to the desk across from his, the one belonging to Kara. He scanned the surface and, as promised, he spotted the cell phone lying next to her notepad.

Picking it up and easily cracking her password, he opened the contact list and spotted what he imagined was Frankie's number (although it was hard to tell through the onslaught of emojis) and dialled. After around three seconds, she picked up.

" _Hey, Kar. What's up?"_

Winn cringed, he hated calling people.

"Umm, it's Winn." He could hear Frankie stop what she was doing, suddenly alert.

 _"What's going on?"_ Her voice was laced with panic and Winn immediately felt guilty.

"No, uhm nothing. There's nothing wrong. I just heard you had a day off."

 _"Oh, yeah. I do."_

"And that you're good with kids."

 _"Where are you going with this?"_

"Do you wanna help me out?"

"You're lucky I wasn't busy."

"And I am eternally grateful to you and your children."

"Yeah yeah, funny guy."

Taking a seat at Winn's desk, she pulled an exercise book from one of his drawers and grabbed a pen from his desk. He watched on from next to her, jumping as she turned and stuffed the book into his hands.

"Take notes."

She walked so casually over to Carter that Winn was genuinely surprised and followed with his stupid little pen and exercise book.

"Hey. Carter, right?"

He looked up, startled, and nodded slightly.

"What kind of phone is that?"

"iPhone 6S." He replied, looking back to whatever he was doing.

Frankie looked back at Winn, a gleam in her eye. _You're gonna like this,_ it seemed to say.

"You like video games?"

Carter didn't reply immediately but even Winn picked up on the slight smile that came onto his downcast face at Frankie's question.

"I guess," He let out solemnly.

"Well," Frankie started, dramatically dragging a seat over from the nearest desk and plonking down on it backwards. "I was going to suggest having a little fun with the monitors in your mum's office, but if all you can come up with is 'I guess'..." Frankie trailed off the end of her sentence, deliberately leaving the statement open for interpretation.

Carter looked back up at her, a full grin stretched wide on his face.

"That's more like it."

Carter jumped up, dropping his phone on the desk and nearly sprinting into Ms Grant's office. Frankie turned to follow him but Winn stopped her.

"How on earth did you do that? I don't even think Kara could crack him."

Frankie stared at him, raising an eyebrow.

"He's not an egg, Winn. Plus, it kind of helps that I worked at a summer camp for like, 5 years and did community service at an orphanage that one time."

"You were such an angel teenager." Winn teased, poking her shoulder gently.

"I was kidding."

"Oh, right."

"About the orphanage part."

Frankie turned and strolled lightly back into the glass lined office and left Winn standing next to the spare desk, a careful smile on his face and a light feeling in his mind.

Feeling vaguely airy, he followed Frankie into the office.

"Who knew Battlefield could be this fun?"

"Well being able to play it on seventeen screens at once might have something to do with it."

Winn, being the ten year old at heart that he was, hadn't exactly been able to just sit and watch Carter play alone.

 _"You can't play Battlefield with one person, it defeats the purpose."_

So now Winn and Carter were playing together and it sounded like Carter was good. Every now and then Frankie had to remind Winn to watch his language around his boss' son.

She'd kind of let Winn take over at this point. She had to admit, he was doing a great job keeping Carter busy. She'd have to congratulate him later.

A buzz from her phone distracted her.

 **Hey, Frankie. It's Brad from the gala. I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go on a date with me?**

Smiling slightly, Frankie quickly typed out a response.

 _Yeah, definitely. What did you have in mind?_

 **I was thinking of making it a surprise.**

 _Interesting_

 **I'll pick you up at 8?**

 _Sounds good. I'll send you my address later._

 **That's a plan. See you tomorrow ;)**

"Hasn't anyone ever told you it's rude to beat a thirteen-year-old at battlefield?" Carter asked sarcastically. Looking at the scores, Frankie noted that Winn was nowhere near winning.

"I don't regularly play thirteen-year-olds who admit that they're thirteen so this is kind of a welcome change."

Smiling, Frankie went back to her phone, allowing herself to get sucked into the world she knew as Archive of Our Own.

Hours passed, though it wasn't boring. Watching Winn get absolutely destroyed by Carter was admittedly hilarious.

They were some of the last people left in the office, beat only by James who claimed he was run dry by his job, but Frankie knew he had finished about a quarter of an hour earlier.

Hearing hurried footsteps, Frankie looked up and spotted a dishevelled Kara come into the room.

"Dude, what the hell?"

Looking at Carter, who hadn't turned, she gestured wildly and Frankie shut up. She walked over and pulled Frankie out of the room. Frankie spotted Winn turning around briefly and he gave her a questioning look. She just shrugged as she came to a stop at Kara's desk.

"Look, Frank. I really appreciate you coming out here to do this. I know this isn't how you would've wanted to spend your day off."

"Woah, wait. Kar, are you really just going to skip over this?"

"Skip over what?"

"The fact that you walked in here two hours late looking like you just fell into a volcano."

"Well,"

"Oh my God."

"That's not exactly what happened. I flew a bomb out over the river kind of nearly drowned."

"DUDE!"

"Keep your voice down!"

"Why doesn't anyone tell me these things?"

"I'll make sure Al calls you later."

"Fine," Frankie said, stalking off to the bathroom, ignoring the very audible sigh that came from her older sister.

"Are you and Frankie dating?"

Winn turned back to Carter, nearly dropping his remote.

"What? No. No. Definitely not."

"How about you and Kara?"

"No. I, I'm not dating anyone at the moment."

"Why?"

Winn sighed. "There are a lot of answers to that question, kid. Which one would you like to hear? The one where I can't decide who I'm interested in or the one where no one is interested in me enough to date me. Plus, Kara's not exactly subtle whenever she's around James."

"Who's James?"

Winn just laughed quietly. _What am I doing, getting love advice from a thirteen-year-old?_ Yet, here he was.

Carter looked back at Winn before quickly refocusing on the game.

"If it's any consolation, I think Frankie likes you."

"Really?" Winn asked before he could stop himself.

"Yeah. You said she came out here on her day off just to help you."

"I dunno, friends do that as well."

Carter shrugged, pressing a few buttons. An explosion lit up the screens briefly before they returned to their dark background.

"Hah!" He stopped, frowning down at his controller. "Sorry, that was indecent."

"Um, nope. You're on." And it was war once again.

At that moment, James walked in, carrying papers and copies and looking only _slightly_ stressed.

"Winn."

Winn turned, still trying his best to destroy Carter's team without watching.

"Yo."

"Pizza's here."

"Don't worry Winn, I'll go easy on you while you get it."

"No, when I get back, we are having a rematch."

Carter just laughed, so Winn got up in search of the pizzas.

Before he was completely out the office door though, he turned around and caught Carter's attention. He carefully mouthed, _that's James._

Washing her hands carefully, Frankie looked up into the mirror to see herself, _no surprises there, Frankie_ , looking fairly messy with her light hair falling out of its braids. Deciding she couldn't be bothered to fix it though, she just strolled out of the bathroom and back into Ms Grant's office.

Only to find Winn running around in a blind panic.

"Dude, what happened?"

" _Carter's gone."_

"What?"

"I just came back from getting the pizza and he'd disappeared!"

"Have you looked everywhere?"

"Of course I've looked everywhere. Do I look like a man who hasn't looked everywhere?"

They stood and looked at each other. Frankie searched Winn's face for any anger or annoyance, but she found only worry on his strong features.

 _"Do you expect Supergirl to attend tonight in light of the bombings?"_

Frankie turned quickly. _No, he wouldn't have._

The screen lit up with the face of none other than Maxwell Lord. Frankie walked slowly out of the office to face the monitor. She could hear Winn behind her but she didn't care. All she could think of was where Carter had gone.

 _"We're here to talk about the future of this planet, not the guest list."_

 _No, no no no. Please tell me he did not go down there to meet-_

"Supergirl," Winn muttered, unknowingly finishing her thoughts for her.

Frankie turned around and looked at him again. They were clearly thinking the same thing.

 _Oh shit._

 **A/N:**

 **That was long.**

 **This chapter was very all over the place while I was writing it, also I wrote like, half of it without the episode in front of me while I was in the car on a road trip.**

 **K bye.**


	10. Dead Girl Walking

_Oh shit._

Turning back to the chairs, Winn grabbed his bag and shoved it on his shoulder. He ran past Frankie, calling out for her to follow him and frantically pummeled the buttons to the elevator.

"Winn, where are we going?"

"To the station. That's the only place he could be right now."

The doors opened and they practically sprung into the small compartment.

"How do we know he's there though? He could've just gone to the bathroom or something."

"He took his bag with him. Plus, the kid had the biggest crush on Supergirl. You didn't even hear the full extent of it. He would do anything for a chance to meet her."

The elevator dinged at the bottom floor, and the doors shuddered open again. They burst through and rushed toward the front of the building and onto the street.

"Ok, but when we get there, how the hell are we gonna find him?"

Hailing a passing taxi, Winn turned back and looked her dead in the eyes.

"I have no clue."

* * *

Pulling up in front of the station Winn quickly paid the driver and they leapt out of the car. They took the stairs three at a time and sprinted through the reception.

Rushing into the giant hall that was serving as the lobby of the station, Frankie looked around in disbelief. The sheer amount of people there and the size of the hall was going to make finding Carter nearly impossible. Winn seemed to be thinking the same thing as he looked at her in desperation.

"Split up."

He nodded and they set off through the crowds, asking everyone for any sign of Carter. After twenty minutes though, Frankie had almost lost all hope. She scanned the heads of the crowd one last time just as Winn appeared next to her, looking utterly defeated. Turning back to flash him a hopeless grimace, she spotted out of the corner of her eye a tuft of curly brown hair making its way through the mass of people.

She spun around, grabbing Winn's shoulder as well and pointed to the escalator.

"There. That's him!" When the boy had distanced himself enough from everyone else, it was plain from his height to his blue sweater that it was Carter.

"Frankie, you're a genius." Winn sputtered as he continued to try and shove in the politest way possible through the hoard of passengers. Keeping an eye on the figure ahead, she spotted someone - undoubtedly Maxwell Lord - take his shoulder and walk straight past the guards and onto the train. _Didn't_ anyone _teach that kid about stranger danger?_

"Winn, there's no way we can get on that train without a ticket."

"I know."

Frankie's phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket, answering hastily.

"Hello?"

 _"Frank, where are you?"_

"At the station." She apologized to three separate people before moving forward.

 _"Frankie, you need to get out of there right now. We just got a tip that there's a bomb at the airport."_

"Look, Alex, there's kind of a problem and I can't leave until Winn and I have it sorted out."

Alex ignored her as she went on. _"Frankie, please. This is important."_

Turning to where the train was waiting, Winn's eyes widened and he pulled on Frankie's sleeve like a toddler.

"There, that's the bomber." He said, pointing somewhere behind her. Frankie turned, ignoring Alex and stared. On the train was a man, looking suspiciously over the crowd with something on his chest. Whatever he was doing there, it was clear he didn't want to be caught. Before Frankie could get a better look at him, he zipped up his hoodie and stepped back into the compartment.

She froze.

"Alex, what do you mean there's a bomb at the airport?"

She saw Winn stop too, staring at her in disbelief.

 _"There's a bomb. And it's at the airport."_

"No, no that's wrong. We just saw the bomber here. He's on the train."

Frankie could just hear Kara's voice coming from someone's comm through the phone. _"So there are two bombs?"_

Frankie stayed silent, letting Alex and Kara make a plan. Winn made a grabby gesture and she handed the phone over to him. He put it on speaker at a quiet volume.

 _"We have visual confirmation at the airport. We can't be sure that what your sister said was accurate."_

 _"I trust her just as much as I trust you."_ Frankie smiled almost absentmindedly.

 _"New plan, I'm going to the station, you look after the airport."_

"Wait, hang on!" Winn yelled, attracting the attention of the people around him. He waved them off and apologized before turning back to her phone.

He swallowed, then - "Carter's on the train."

It was like ripping off a band-aid. She heard Kara swear in Kryptonian before muttering something about _I gave you one job_.

Alex hung up.

The room started shaking. Frankie and Winn turned quickly and saw the one thing they didn't want to happen. The train started moving.

* * *

Normally, Kara loved flying. It was an escape, a way to be free from the world that tied her to the ground. She'd use any opportunity she could, any excuse to get into the sky and just think. But now that she was working more and more with the DEO, her flying time had become less about decreasing stress or the overstimulation Earth often gave her, and more about speeding to a particular place at a particular time to save a particular person. All the freedom was gone from the flight and, while, by all means, she didn't hate working with the DEO to help everyone she could, loved it in fact, she did tend to miss the choice of where she was going and what she was going to do when she landed.

As any well-intentioned person would say, she could of course, just fly in her spare time. But when she wasn't doing things for the DEO, or running obscene errands for Ms Grant, she was doing things with Alex or Winn or trying to be a better sister to Frankie.

All in all, she was too busy to be thinking about leisure time.

She was too busy to think about being not so occupied because her boss' son and hundreds of others were on a train with a deadly bomb being carried by a mass murderer - Ethan Knox. How said son got onto said train was still a mystery that she'd have to pick Frankie and Winn's brains about later.

She caught up with the train and landed gently on the roof. The last thing she wanted was to scare Knox into doing something stupid.

Her hair whipped past her fast from the high speeds of the train and she struggled to remain balanced. _Don't worry Kara, you got this._ Looking around, she spotted a panel that she lifted easily from the roof and she dropped into one of the compartments.

Right behind Carter and Lord.

Everyone turned around, stood and stared at her. Kara knew that this meant that no one had any clue there was anything wrong. That was a good start. Carter was looking at her in wide-eyed amazement, and she was starting to second-guess her decision to rescue him herself.

"Supergirl, I was starting to think you might have a thing for me." _Lord, arrogant as ever._

"Ethan Knox is on board." Knowing Lord would be the only other person who would know who that was, she avoided letting the entire compartment know exactly what Knox was planning on doing.

Lord smile dropped as soon as he registered what she had said. "No, that's impossible."

"You need to stop this train."

"I can't. It's automated." _Of course it is._ Kara looked over at Carter, who was definitely the youngest in the compartment and standing a little too close to Lord for comfort. He was watching them with poorly masked fear plain in his expression.

"Something's wrong isn't it?" Kara exchanged a look with Lord and walked over to Carter, bending down so she was level with him. Grabbing his shoulders gently, she looked him dead in the eye.

"There is a problem, but I'm here to fix it." She thought about how she could keep him safe, and an idea jumped into her mind. She remembered how enamoured he had been with Supergirl while they were still in CatCo, and how he had probably come all the way down here just to catch a glimpse of his hero, and that he would probably do anything to help her out if he could.

"You look brave and strong. Can you help me?" Marvelling about how inappropriate this would be in any other context, she tried hard to maintain a steady eye contact. He swallowed, then nodded.

"Good." Standing up to her full height, she watched as his eyes followed hers until he had to tilt his head back slightly to keep her in sight. "I need you and Mr Lord to get all of the passengers to the other end of the train. Ready to be a hero?"

"Yes." He said with a face full of determination and pride.

She nodded and Lord gestured with his fingers, herding all of the passengers on the compartment through the door behind him.

Kara tuned out the sound of the passengers until all she could hear was her own calm breathing. She focused hard on the door opposite the one Lord was using until she could pick each compartment from the other, slowly peeling away the walls as two, three, five, nine rooms passed her vision. Nine compartments, each more full of unsuspecting boarders than the last until she found Ethan Knox.

She ran. Ran through the nine compartments, telling everyone that they needed to go to the other end of the train and trying not to cause too much panic. An ultimately fruitless endeavour, as it had to be jarring to see Supergirl running, not even flying, running through your compartment and telling you to up and leave without any explanation.

Finally reaching the back of the train, (or front, she couldn't tell which), she forced open the very solid metal doors that stood between her and Knox. The moment she could see him clearly, she knew what the next five minutes would involve.

Knox was dishevelled, with a bomb pack strapped to his chest and the trigger in his hand.

She knew there wouldn't be a fight.

She was suddenly aware that Alex wasn't yammering away in her ear about what to do and where to put her foot and how to throw a punch that wouldn't leave her open for a counter attack. She had the freedom to do this talk-down her way and for that, she couldn't have been more grateful.

"This bomb is rigged to the button in my hand. You try to move me off the train, it goes off instantly." His voice shook with fear and Kara could already tell there was more to this.

"Ethan, I want to help you, but you've got to deactivate that first."

He shook his head, stepping back slightly. "There's no way out for me."

Although he moved back, Kara didn't move forward. She stayed still. "There's always hope."

He began moving back again but stopped when Kara continued. "I know you're upset, but think about your daughter."

Alex had briefed her on what Ethan was doing, why he was standing on a train with a bomb strapped to his chest, threatening to blow up the entire train and himself if she didn't listen to him. That he worked for Lord before being fired when his work turned erratic, then his wife filed for divorce and claimed sole custody of their daughter.

Now that daughter was sick and Knox had wanted someone to blame. He chose Lord.

His facade dropped almost instantly. His hand went to his hair and raked through the overgrown curls.

"Ethan, don't do this."

"You don't understand. You can't."

"I understand what it feels like to be overwhelmed. But you are not alone. I can help you-" She took the risk of stepping closer to him and regretted it almost immediately.

"Stay back!"

Not moving any closer, Kara kept going. "I know your daughter's sick. She needs you. Don't you wanna help her?"

"That's what this is all about," He said, turning his back to the wall. "It's her only hope."

"What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter anymore! No one was supposed to know it was me and now they do I-, I can never face my little girl again."

"Ethan," Kara pleaded. "Please, do not kill all those people."

After a pause, a long, desperate pause, Ethan spoke. "I won't."

Kara sighed in relief but she was cut off because Ethan kept going. "Becuase you'll save them."

He looked her dead in the eye.

"You'll have thirty seconds."

He pressed the button.

* * *

Frankie didn't hear the bomb explode.

She didn't see the compartment go up in flames because it was miles away, out past the city boundary. Winn told her later that he'd heard something akin to a gunshot while they were standing in the station waiting for news, but Frankie wasn't sure if he was just making it up.

Just minutes earlier, Frankie had gotten a text from Alex that told her that the bomb at the airport had been a decoy, that they'd been right in knowing that the real explosion would be happening at the station.

Then, just as everyone else in the station started to get wind of what happened, _There's a bomb on the train?!_ , Alex texted Frankie again.

 _I'm coming down now. I'll tell you what happened when I get there._

Everyone around them was starting to panic at the thought of their loved ones being stuck on a train with a psychopathic man who had a bomb. Now that she thought about it, Frankie didn't even know what happened on the train. No one had yet told her, even though Alex promised she would.

"What do you think happened?" Winn asked from the ground where he sat with his back against a pillar.

"I think Kara saved them. I think she did whatever magic she always does and saved everyone there."

"I really hope so."

Right then, the doors to the reception opened and Alex walked through, immediately spotting them to the side of the crowds.

She came over quickly, ignoring the looks she was getting from everyone who assumed (correctly) from her black outfit and exposed weaponry that she was a fed.

When she reached them, she wrapped Frankie up in a tight hug, whispering in her ear, "I'm so glad you're ok."

"Al, we didn't have to do anything."

"Yeah, we literally just stood here." Winn coughed from over Frankie's shoulder.

Pulling away, Alex smirked at him.

"Yeah, you just managed to let the kid Kara was babysitting get on a train with a bomb."

Winn gave her a mock glare until Alex gave one back and he turned away sputtering.

"I should probably go find Carter if you've got a ride back, Frank."

"Yeah, that might be a good idea."

He held out his hand anyway.

"Thank you for helping me babysit tonight. Even if we aren't the best at it."

She scoffed and knocked his hand aside, pulling him in for a hug. "Get in here, you big softie."

He laughed and hugged her back, his hands patting her back.

"I had a great time today, Winn."

As they pulled back, he nodded.

"I did as well."

He turned and left quickly after that. Frankie watched him go, not noticing Alex eyeing her strangely.

"Come on, let's go."

"Where are we going?"

"I have some work to do, so I'm gonna bring you to the DEO with me."

"So I get to see it?"

"That you do, my friend."

Frankie smiled to herself as she turned to follow Alex out the doors.

* * *

They pulled up about twenty minutes later in front of a desert hill in the middle of nowhere.

"Umm, Al?" Frankie asked, as Alex casually jumped out of the car and started toward the sand hill.

"Mmhm?"

"Are your headquarters really in the middle of a desert?"

Alex didn't bother locking the car but waited until Frankie was out of it before pressing a weird button on the key fob.

"No, I just drove us twenty minutes to the middle of this wasteland because I thought it would be a fun detour."

Frankie was one-hundred per cent ready to glare the hell out of Alex, but the car was being swallowed. Literally. A hole had opened in the sand and the car was being lowered on some invisible platform down under the surface.

Already from fifty feet away, Alex called, "What, you just gonna stand there staring at sand or are you coming?"

Frankie ran to catch up with her.

"So what happened on the train?"

"Uhm, so the bomb went off."

Frankie froze. Alex stopped as well, turning around to watch her.

"It what?"

"Yeah. No one was hurt, though. Kara managed to detach the compartments from the front cab where it was, and no one was close enough to be affected by it except Knox."

"He didn't make it, did he?"

"No. He didn't. I don't think he planned on surviving either."

Alex kept walking, so Frankie had no choice but to start again with her.

They moved in silence for a minute or two before Alex spoke again.

"Kara got picked up by some of the agents so she'll be there already."

"She'll be pretty shaken, huh."

"Yeah, she will." Reaching the sandhill, Alex moved to the side, gesturing to a door Frankie hadn't noticed, although it was clear she wasn't supposed to.

"But she's strong. She'll be fine, I think. It isn't the hardest thing she's ever had to do before."

Holding the door open, Alex waved her inside.

"Now normally, you'd have to go through some mandatory security checks, but for the moment, I pulled some strings and the paperwork will be it."

Frankie looked around in amazement. The entire place looked as if it had been made 20 years in the future, with high tech equipment, monitors and the like adorning every available surface.

It was dimly lit, but the glow of screens made everything look ten times brighter. It had a distinct, metallic-y smell to it and the low buzz of talk and machinery kept the atmosphere at a comfortable level.

But it was cold. Very cold. Probably a by-product of being underground. Frankie wrapped her coat tighter around her shoulders as Alex lead her deeper into the HQ.

"Cold isn't it. Took me ages to get used to it."

Not one of the many black-clad people that walked past spared them a glance, but Alex didn't seem to care.

The narrow corridor they were walking down suddenly widened out into a huge central area, with desks lining the walls and set up in a circular pattern on the floor.

Just from one look around, Frankie knew that the sheer amount of future technology in the room would make Winn break into an excited sweat.

People sat scattered at the desks, some with comms, some without, all doing various things that Frankie couldn't name. In the very front of the room, there was a set up of monitors that reminded her of the ones in Ms Grant's office, all displaying the same, blown up picture of who Frankie assumed was Ethan Knox.

Turning to a glass-lined room that looked like a lab of some sort, Alex pushed open the door.

"Just wait in here for a minute. And don't touch anything."

"I'm not four years old, Alex."

One of the passing people stared at her strangely, and Alex snapped at him.

"Keep moving." He scurried off, metaphorical tail between his legs.

"Jeez, they listen to you."

"They have to. Technically I'm most of these guys' superior. He's just surprised you're talking to me this casually."

Alex shut the door behind her and Frankie took a seat at one of the stools. She neglected to look around the lab until Alex got back because despite what she told herself, she actually really wanted to take a closer look at some of the fancy-ass equipment and tools that sat on the table.

She instead looked out the window and saw Alex talking to a tall, dark-skinned man, nodding knowingly and gesturing around to various places in the room. Someone came and unloaded a big metal something on her and she thanked them, walking back to the lab.

She lowered the something that looks like a glorified lump down onto the table and started pulling it apart.

"Kara should be in soon, she's just coming back now."

As if on cue, Kara crashed her way in through the door, still fully decked out in her super suit.

"Kara, could you pass me that allen wrench?"

Kara bypassed the wrench and just grabbed the top of the mound, snapping it off.

"That works too."

Walking over, Kara took a seat next to her, doing a full-on double take when she realised who was there.

"Frankie?"

Frankie waved sheepishly, smiling awkwardly.

"Hi."

Kara got up and pulled her into a hug that had she not been minding her powers would have crushed her bones to dust. Beeping from behind them made them both turn back to Alex, who was frowning at what Frankie then realised must have been the bomb from the airport.

"Ok, that's weird. Hank said that this was a decoy but, it has a kill switch. Why would you put a fail-safe on a decoy?"

Kara was paying no attention, but she sat back down anyway.

"Yeah, that's not the only thing that doesn't add up. Knox killing himself makes no sense."

"Well crazy guy snaps, gets even crazier," Frankie said.

Without looking up, Alex continued. "Yeah, it's the perfect excuse for a terrorist attack."

"No, but he didn't seem crazy. He seemed, sad. He said these bombings were for his daughter but how do these bombings help a sick girl?"

"Who knows?" Alex said, still focused on the bomb. "Parents can go nuts when it comes to their kids."

Kara stopped. She gasped slowly.

"How do you think a parent would feel if their kid was on a train by themselves, with a bomb on it?"

Frankie sank back in her chair.

"Kara, I am so sorry," Alex said apologetically, realising what she meant.

"I am _so_ fired."

Kara ran out of the lab, not even bothering with a goodbye.

Alex looked back at Frankie earnestly.

"You're dead when she remembers it's your fault."

"I know."


	11. A Night to Remember

_**We still on for tonight?**_

Frankie stopped. In all the heat of losing Carter and making sure Kara didn't murder her for losing Carter, she had completely forgotten that she was supposed to be meeting Brad.

 _Oops._

She quickly typed out a response, trying to make it sound as though she hadn't forgotten that he was taking her out. She was lucky her Saturday nights were the least eventful nights of her week.

The previous night had been a long one. Kara had given Frankie an earful. It was all the usual crap about responsibility and trust, and she was at least eighty seven-per cent sure she had heard the exact same speech from Eliza at least twice.

But Carter was safe, and Kara hadn't been fired and Winn had somehow managed to escape any form of punishment from her, so Frankie didn't really see what the big deal was.

Leaning back in her chair, Frankie wondered what the hell she was getting into with this date. She'd only met this guy once. He seemed nice enough, but there was always a chance that he wasn't.

 _Ah well,_ she thought. _As the great Einstein had probably once said, "Take risks and don't stuff up."_

Frankie picked up her phone and sent a text to Alex.

 _Come over when you can. I need help._

Then, as an afterthought;

 _It's not an emergency._

Only a few minutes went by before she got a message back.

 **I'll be there in twenty.**

* * *

True to her word, Alex arrived twenty-two minutes later, picking her way through the groups of people gathered around desks.

When she reached Frankie, she plonked her bag down and crossed her arms.

"What's up?"

"You know Brad?"

She nodded.

"He's taking me out tonight and I have no clue what to do."

Alex sighed, a trying to hide a smile.

"I don't know why everyone keeps coming to me for dating advice,"

"Because you're the nicest person on the planet and you have an amazing fashion sense."

"Keep saying stuff like that and I might just consider helping."

Frankie pulled back in her chair, stretching pointedly.

"Well, when you put it like that."

Alex glared at her.

"You're not funny, Frank."

"I was under the impression that I was the absolute epitome of hilarity, Alex."

Alex laughed, leaning down to shove Frankie gently.

"I miss this."

"Huh?"

"I miss just being able to laugh and be stupid with each other."

And it was true. Ever since Alex had started working for the DEO, and especially when Kara had gotten in on the action, the two had become more distant. Not that Frankie and Alex had ever been particularly tight, but after the longstanding childhood dramas of being the youngest of three had worn off, they had definitely been closer.

"Oh, that reminds me. My director and I have been talking." Alex started, reaching into her bag.

"You have a director?"

"My boss, Hank. We just have to call him director."

"That's kind of _bossy_ , don't you reckon?"

 _"We've been talking,"_ Frankie grinned to herself. Even after so many years, there was still something so satisfying about making Alex pissed. "We decided that it's not really fair that you have to be kept in the dark about this whole Supergirl thing."

"Preach sista'"

"Please never say that again."

"Gladly." Turning back to her desktop, she resumed typing at the case she was working on. Relieved to finally have something to do again, Frankie was eager to get it done. _Although,_

"Please continue what you were saying, I liked where that conversation was headed."

" _Anyway_ , Hank and I figured it might be time to, you know, give you some clearance."

"Clearance? Like unlimited access to all the clearance sales at J-V's?"

"No, Frankie. Like clearance at the DEO."

"Wait, really?"

Smiling, Alex nodded. "Mhm. Although," her expression dropped conspiratorially. "It is only for emergencies. You wouldn't get to just waltz in when you wanted too without someone on the inside saying you can."

Frankie pulled her best grin out and flashed it clumsily at Alex.

"That's amazing."

Alex pulled a folder from her bag and handed it to Frankie.

"All the details are in here, so,"

Frankie looked back at Alex, still smiling. She stuffed the manila folder into her bag.

"When do you get off?"

"Fifteen minutes."

Alex checked her watch, then nodding, pulled a spare chair to the desk and sat down.

"Also, why are you here?"

Glancing over, Frankie frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Why are you working? It's Saturday."

"Well, it's not my fault my boss is a workaholic and decided that ' _weekends were for the weak.'_ Plus I had yesterday off and needed to catch up." Frankie said sarcastically.

"Right then, smarty-pants."

Sighing, she looked back to her computer, but she figured she couldn't concentrate anymore. She had been plagued by one question since the previous night. She opened her mouth to talk-

And Louise came rushing over.

"Frankie! You'll never guess what just happened."

She stopped dead when she noticed Alex, and a smile grew on her face.

"Alex! It's been such a long time."

Standing up, Alex offered her hand out to Louise but she pushed it aside, instead reaching over and pulling Alex into a tight hug. Alex stared at Frankie over her shoulder, a clear _save me!_ look on her face. Frankie just laughed and pushed her chair back away from her desk.

"Yeah, it's- um. Great to see you too Louise."

When they broke apart, Alex wiped her hands on her jeans, coughing pointedly.

"I'll be back in a minute." She turned on her heel and headed in the direction of the bathroom.

"You know Alex, she doesn't appreciate physical contact unless it's from the blankets on her bed." Standing up, Frankie hugged Louise herself and she smiled smugly.

"What was it you were going to tell me?"

"Oh, that. It doesn't matter now." Louise said, waving a hand distractedly. Frankie sighed. She was never going to hear it now. "What does matter though, Alex is looking great these days."

"Lou, no."

"Come on, give me a chance. Those jeans were sexy."

"Lou, just because you haven't had a girlfriend in a _whole_ _month_ doesn't mean you can think about my sister like that. It's gross." Sitting back behind her desk, she turned off her monitor. Jumping up onto her desk, Louise laughed.

"Besides, Alex isn't gay." The sound of feet behind her made both of them jump.

"You ready Frank?"

Nodding gratefully, she loaded everything from her desk that she needed into her bag and slipped her shoes back on. Hauling it onto her shoulder, she turned one last time back to Louise.

"The answer is no." Turning back around to walk with Alex, she heard Louise cackle behind her and she shook her head.

Looking confused, Alex asked, "What did I miss?"

"Nothing important, trust me."

Heading out of the building, Frankie avoided eye contact with Alex, hoping she wouldn't push further.

"So where are you two going tonight?"

"I actually have no idea. He'll come and pick me up."

Alex smirked. "So you let him pick the place?"

"Yeah?"

When Alex laughed, Frankie turned around to face her, walking backwards.

"What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing. I just thought you would've wanted to choose yourself."

Frankie stopped a good few feet in front of Alex.

"Shoot. I still need to tell him where I live."

Alex burst out in hysterics.

* * *

Arriving at her apartment, Frankie opened her door and frowned at the mess it had been left in.

"Didn't realise you weren't able to clean a room."

"Shut up. I'm sure yours is worse."

Alex scoffed, dropping her bag on the couch. Frankie spent a minute running around and trying to clean up all of the clothes and junk on the floor. She thought back to the one question she'd had since the day before.

 _Well, there's no point beating around the bush._

"Why did you say I had to leave the station yesterday?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," Frankie said, snatching up a bra that had somehow managed to make its way under the couch. "You told me to leave the station even though you thought there was a bomb at the airport."

"Because I knew something was going over there, we just didn't know it was a bomb."

Alex didn't give her an opportunity to reply because her phone rang and she answered.

Frankie didn't really pay attention to the conversation she was having, something about telling Demos (whoever that was) that it would have to wait.

When Alex put down the phone, she stood up, finding her way into Frankie's fridge and to the collection of beers that sat in one of the trays. Frankie frowned but didn't say anything about it. Her mind spun into action all of a sudden and she was reminded of the folder stuffed into her bag. Pulling out the basic brown envelope, she opened it, revealing several pieces of paper stapled together. It looked like a pretty bog-standard contract.

Her legal brain jumped into action and she scanned it quickly, but stopped at a point about half-way down the page, frowning.

"It says on here that immediate family are permitted to know. Al, is there something you want to tell me?"

Alex swallowed. "I worked so hard trying to protect Kara. I'd been doing it since I was a teenager and it was basically drilled into my bones. And when she decided she wanted to come out and save everyone from aliens and crap, I thought I had failed. She wasn't going to be safe fighting crime and therefore I wasn't being a good sister. She was going out of her way to put herself in danger."

"You couldn't have possibly stopped her though."

"No. I couldn't have." She laughed drily. "She's just as stubborn as you are. But then I realised that I hadn't failed completely just yet. I don't know if you realised, mainly because I never git the chance, but when you were born, I was told that when you grew up, you'd need someone by your side. Then Kara happened and all of my productive energy was focused on her. Even if I had anything left, you were a hundred miles away at some posh high school."

Frankie thought back to the grand, prison-like building she had grown up in. "God, I hated that place."

"Seemed terrible. Mum tried to send me there for a while, but I was never gonna make it work."

Smiling, Frankie looked back to the folder in her hands. Something about the way Alex had phrased that made her think. Never in a million years did she imagine that Alex would put her life on hold to protect her, even now that they were older. Especially now. She thought that may have been a deeper reason behind it, but didn't push it.

"I can take care of myself, you know?" She asked, a soft question rather than a biting retort.

Alex reached over the table and took Frankie's hands in her own. "I know. I know you can. And now that you're getting tied into this, you're gonna have to."

"I'll be fine, Alex."

Alex looked up, her eyes sparkling with tears and smiled.

"We've still got a couple of hours left if you wanna chill out?"

So they settled on the couch, blankets and pillows arranged carefully. Frankie flicked on a re-run of Raymond, but neither of them were really watching it. They both just enjoyed each other's company, sitting together for God-knows how long. It took a while before Alex checked her watch. She jumped.

"Uh, you should probably start getting ready, you don't have that much time left."

"Oh shit."

Heading to her room, she pulled away clothes from the rack as Alex followed behind her.

"Want me to take a look?"

Frankie nodded and Alex began looking through her options, frowning every now and then.

"How do you manage to get by with nothing formal."

Frankie shrugged. "Office code is business casual. I can get by with some nice pants and a shirt."

"Well nice pants," Alex held up a pair of sweatpants. "And a shirt are not going to get you past a first date."

"Shouldn't I just be wearing what I'm comfortable in?"

Alex sat down on the bed.

"Frankie, you tell me. Would you feel comfortable going on a first date with someone who probably owns a penthouse in sweatpants?"

"Fuck off."

A half hour of stressing and broken hair ties later and Frankie looked presentable; a state that given the time limit had seemed completely unattainable.

"I think you're ready to go."

Looking at herself in the mirror, Frankie smiled. She wasn't wearing a dress, the only suitable one she owned had been the one she'd worn to the gala. So they'd gone with a simple pair of black jeans ("Hah! Told you I could wear pants." "Yeah, well it's not my fault you only own one dress."), a white blouse and leather jacket that Frankie was pretty certain she'd stolen from Alex at some point.

Alex had wanted to cut Frankie's hair shorter but she insisted that, _no, we don't have time,_ and, _no Alex, that really isn't a good idea._ So Alex had settled for straightening it and leaving it down.

"You look amazing." Alex appeared over her shoulder, grinning proudly.

"It's all your doing, Al."

A sudden knock at the door made them jump slightly.

"Sounds like your date is here."

Frankie her purse from the counter and almost sprinted to the door. She stopped dead in front of it and swung it open in the most inconspicuous manner she could.

She was glad she was dressed down because Brad had clearly had the same idea. Nothing fancy, but not too underdressed for a first date. His white oxford shirt was neatly pressed, matching his black hair almost perfectly. A brown blazer was thrown over his shoulders and he looked to be mostly prepared.

"Hi."

She realised she hadn't said anything yet, and felt her cheeks heat up. She quickly blurted out a reply.

She could feel Alex hovering behind her awkwardly and so turned around, letting him see into the apartment.

"Um, this is my sister Alex. Alex, this is Brad."

They both walked forward and shook each other's hand. Frankie could see Alex gripping his hand a little bit too tightly.

Frankie walked up behind her, elbowing her in the back. Alex let go of his hand altogether, glaring when she turned back around.

Brad seemed eager to get going after that and Frankie didn't exactly blame him.

"I guess we should probably get going."

He nodded his agreement hurriedly and Frankie slipped out of the apartment, not without getting a glare at Alex in first.

Shutting the door, Frankie smiled apologetically at Brad.

"I'm sorry about Alex, she's a bit over-protective."

"Nah, it's cool." He assured. "I get it. My brother would've been the same."

They started walking back down the corridor. It was very casual, but Frankie didn't miss the past tense he used. He must've noticed her brief pause because he explained.

"He's not dead. That's not what I meant. We just don't really talk much."

"Oh, that's good."

Brad turned to her, looking at her strangely. Frankie backtracked.

"No, I didn't... it's not good that you don't- I mean, not that it's terrible-"

"I get it. Don't worry." He said, smiling.

 _Way to blow your chances, idiot._

"I'm just hoping you're one of those people who laugh when other people say stupid things."

"I think, maybe we could just move on from it."

Relieved, Frankie grinned. "Yeah, I think we can."

* * *

They took an Uber downtown, which was already a good start.

"You know, down here, they have the best Thai food-"

"Well, I'm glad you said that." Brad pointed out the window.

Confused, Frankie looked. She felt her face light up. Not only had he managed to guess which restaurant out of the few thousand there happened to be in all of National City, he seemed nice enough.

 _What a catch._

He got out carefully and opened her door for her, holding out his hand. She grinned and took it, letting him lead her into the restaurant.

Frankie knew the interior all too well, she'd eaten there on many occasions, but tonight was different. Maybe it was the fact that the entire room was candle-lit, or that everyone eating there seemed to be on a date, or maybe it was the soft jazz music playing in the background.

 _Maybe it's because you're actually here with a date, dumbass._

When one of the waiters walked up, he showed them not to a table, but through a back door she'd never actually seen before. They went up a dim, musky set of stairs and he opened a door that lead onto the roof.

It was beautiful.

There was only space for a few tables, but there were no other diners there. The sun had long since set, but there was still a pinkish glow emanating from the surrounding sky. There weren't any candles - kind of pointless on a rooftop - but there were very cliché fairy lights strung up around the low walls, which did manage to give a romantic ambience to the whole place. The music wasn't continued out here, but it didn't need to be. The sounds of birds and leaves and cars were absolutely perfect.

"Dude, how did you do this?"

"I'm uh, friends with the owner."

"Well, it's amazing." She said, laughing.

"Yeah?"

"Mhm. Very romantic." Frankie moved over to one of the tables by the edge that had been made up and sat down, waiting for Brad to follow.

"There we go."

 _This is gonna be fun._

* * *

Alex had made the decision to hang out in Frankie's apartment. She didn't really feel like going back to her own place, and so took a seat on the couch, opening Netflix on the tv. She took a sip of her beer before she felt her phone go off.

 _Kara, I swear if this is about the potsticker again-_

She answered.

 _"Alllleeexxx."_ Kara drawled.

"Yes, Kara?"

 _"James is really hot."_

Alex had to admit, not what she'd been expecting, but a welcome change from the potstickers argument nevertheless.

"What is up with you guys? First Frankie and Brad, and now you and James-"

 _"But he's just so nice. And you said that you thought he wouldn't get back together with Lucy."_

"I also said I thought Luke was dating Leia a long time ago."

 _"You suck, you know that right?"_

Alex smiled. "Ok, but what's really going on."

 _"He's just, the way he acts, it's like he knows that I like him. He's just respecting my feelings. And he always makes sure I'm ok after I go out, and he's a really good photographer. Plus he's all buddy-buddy with Kal, so I know he'd approve. He's really funny as well. And he's super strong, like have you seen him? And-"_

Alex stopped paying attention after that. Sure, she knew Kara had fallen hard for this guy, but she always had trouble relating. Out of the three of them, Kara had always been more at home in relationships, and Frankie (on the rare occasion that she liked someone) somehow always ended up taking a permanent residency in the friend-zone. Alex was not really acquainted with either.

 _"Alex, are you listening?"_

"Yeah?"

 _"Where did you say Frankie was tonight?"_

"I didn't say where Frankie was tonight."

 _"Ok, so where is she? She isn't answering her phone."_

"She went out with Brad."

 _"Oooh, Brad from Brankie Brad?"_

"Yeah, him."

 _"Can we stalk their date?"_

"No Kara, we can't."

 _This was going to be a long night,_ Alex thought.

* * *

"So, where did you say you went to school?"

Frankie smiled, looking down at her plate. _This day was not gonna let me live it down._

"I actually went to an out of town all-girls private school."

"Did you have a uniform?"

Frankie frowned. _Men._ "Ok, laugh all you want, but I liked it better than having to stress out about what to wear every day."

"Alas, I admit it, one of the tougher things I dealt with in high school." Brad took a sip from his glass, winking. They sat in silence for a minute, both smiling to themselves before he spoke again.

"So, tell me about Alex."

"Oh, well when we were younger, we weren't really ever tight. Like we never spoke really. She was smart and got a lot of attention, you know?" He nodded. "And then when I was eleven, my parents adopted another kid, Kara. She needed, a little more help to settle in so they sent me off to a rich, uptight all-girls boarding school so I was out of the way."

"Jesus."

"It wasn't as bad as it sounds. It was actually kind of fun. But I mean, what about you? Were you a playground kid or a library kid?"

"Please. Look at me, I was totally a library kid. I learnt my basic stock skills trading Pokémon cards and pogs."

"Really? Pogs?"

"Don't tell me you're too young for pogs,"

"I'm not too young they were just, going off the scene a bit."

Their laughter lasted a long time, and it was difficult to stop. But when they did, Frankie sighed.

"I'm having a really great night tonight."

"Yeah, me too."

A smile, a laugh and that was all it took. She liked him.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Going to Canberra for a week. Which means 10 hours on a bus. Which means a Hamilton marathon.**

 **This was very much late and very much a filler. I'm really sorry about that, I just haven't had really any motivation lately with exams and stuff.**

 **K bye.**


	12. Easy as Pie

**Before we start, just note that I've changed some inaccuracies from previous chapters, so it should all fit with the flashbacks now.**

* * *

"Alex, you're going to be fine."

 _"Speak for yourself, you're not even coming!"_

Piling her stacks of papers on top of each other, Frankie sighed through the phone, almost dropping her bag.

"Look, I'm sorry that Crawford decided it would be a good idea if he gave me every single assignment he had on hand the same week my mum was coming from out of town for Thanksgiving. Plus, you have Kara."

 _"Well, can you just try and make it tonight?"_

If she was being honest, Frankie knew there were about a million other things she would rather be doing that night, like watching the episode of Kitchen Nightmares her tv had decided to cut out during the night before. But of course, by the grace of pointless social etiquettes, she would have to make an effort to get to Kara's apartment.

She wasn't excited. That much was evident. But every year, she pushed through the pain and sat for one meal and listened to the stories of her old neighbours who have apparently adopted a horse. So instead of complaining, she would suck it out in hopes of maybe getting a slice of chocolate pecan pie. But Alex didn't need to know that.

"I'll try my best."

 _"Thank you."_

* * *

Kara was never late.

Alex knew that something had come up with the DEO, but she had always been able to count on Kara being on time. And now, with the whole flying thing, it should've been a no-excuses promise. But Kara was late, and it was doing nothing to quell Alex's nerves. Add in the fact that Frankie had flaked, and it wasn't looking up to be the calmest moment she'd ever had.

She wasn't exactly looking forward to seeing Eliza again, but it had been almost six months since they'd last met and she had to admit, she was starting to miss her. But the curtains were jumping around in a sudden burst of wind and Alex's thinking time was over.

Kara flew in through the open window, landing softly next to Alex.

"Hey."

"Finally."

Kara glared at her sarcastically. "Nice to see you too. " She looked around. "Where's Frankie?"

"Not coming."

Alex waved off the questions she knew were coming and sighed pointedly.

"Look, this big, havoc-wreaking, lady-beast thing broke free. Happens to the best of us."

Alex followed Kara to her counter, sighing. "I'm sorry, I'm just... I'm freaking out."

"Alex," Kara said, leaning down on the wood bench, staring at her sister. "I have seen you take down a human-sized bug without a weapon. This is going to be _fine_."

Alex shook her head, ready with an argument. "Last year, she was mad at me for _you_ not dating enough." She said, pointing a finger at Kara. "Okay? I can't even imagine what she's gonna do to me for you coming out as Supergirl."

"She seemed fine on the phone."

Alex put her hand on her hip, staring at Kara.

"At least she's making pie."

Scoffing, Alex laughed pitifully. "Yeah. I'm sure your favourite, too."

"Ok, chocolate pecan pie is the best dessert in the galaxy. And as someone who's been to twelve different planets, I mean that literally."

Alex wanted to say something else, but there was a hard knock on the door.

"Oh, God."

Kara quickly ran to open it, but Alex immediately spotted one problem.

"No, you need to change out of that!" Alex shout-whispered, gesturing frantically to the super-suit Kara was still wearing.

"It's fine, _it's fine_ ," Kara said, batting away Alex's worry with her hands. She opened the door to a somehow immaculate looking Eliza, who rushed in and immediately dropped her bags, wrapping her arms around Kara.

"Eliza!"

"My girls! My best, favourite, wonderful girls."

Eliza pulled away from Kara and turned, taking Alex into her own hug, still excitedly yapping. Stumbling away from her mum after an embrace that was a little bit too tight, she straightened her jacket.

"Oh, you both look so great!" Alex watched her look at Kara. "You always looked great in blue." Kara sheepishly fiddled with the edges of her cape.

Eliza turned to Alex, who automatically avoided eye contact.

"And you look tired, sweetie. Is the lab keeping you busy?"

"Yeah. It is." Somehow, keeping that lie to her mum had been the easiest thing ever, it wasn't about to stop now. "And, Frankie can't make it just now - she got caught up with work - but she'll be around tonight."

Eliza glanced around the room, seemingly having only just noticed that she was missing a whole child, and nodded. "That's a real shame. I hope she's doing well?"

"She is."

"That's good."

There was a moment of strained tension, where it seemed everyone wanted to say something but no one did. Alex coughed, looking at Kara.

"So how was your flight?"

"Oh, it was fine, just a little bumpy," Eliza said, gesturing wildly with her hands.

"Yeah, I hate when that happens. I hit some crazy air pockets flying back from the-"

Alex nudged her. Hard.

"The- the place I was at..." Kara trailed off lamely.

Eliza didn't seem to notice and looked sincerely at Kara.

"You're doing great, Kara."

Alex wiped her nose, stepping forward. "You really think so?"

"Of course."

Alex nodded, sighing gratefully. She wanted to say a great weight had been lifted from her shoulder, or that she felt unbelievably relieved. But she couldn't. Something about Eliza's mere presence made her feel tense, or as though she was about to be yelled at for something. It made her feel like a child.

 _Ah, the wonders of parents who put_ way _too much pressure on their kids from a young age. Perfect._

* * *

"Frankie, I thought you said your mum was coming today?"

Frankie looked over at her best friend, frowning.

"She is."

"So shouldn't you be there?"

"It's not really in my best interest if I'm being honest."

Louise pulled the bread away from her sandwich, silently offering Frankie the chicken she knew she wasn't going to eat. Frankie took it without question.

"You know, it's not amazing that she just kind of left me and was like, _here child, go be free in the wild._ "

Louise chewed silently, thinking.

"You're going tonight though, yeah?"

"Only because I have to. Lou, you've never met her-"

"Yeah, and from the way you've been describing her I'd think she has four heads and breathes fire for a living."

Frankie waved her hands in defeat, almost dropping her fork. "Ok, ok. I'm sorry. I just kind of hoped you'd be on my side with this."

"Who said I wasn't?"

"Well, you're not really doing well to say otherwise."

"Look," Louise said, putting her sandwich - which was now just bread - down. "I get that she wasn't the greatest mum ever, but it was so long ago that I think she deserves another chance."

Frankie didn't say anything.

"I know it's probably the last thing you want to do, but it's worth a try."

"I'm being really salty aren't I?"

"A little bit, yeah."

Frankie sighed, pushing her lunch away. "OK, fine."

As she was packing up to head home several hours later, Frankie heard the telltale signs of Alex coming in from the office doors. But she wasn't alone. Turning around, Frankie was surprised to see Alex accompanied by her mother as they walked through the now mostly empty office. Alex caught her eye before Eliza did and automatically flashed an apologetic smile at her.

"Frankie! I haven't seen you in a long time!" Eliza said as she neared Frankie's desk.

"I know, it's been a while."

There were several moments of strained tension that seemed to stretch on forever, in which everyone simply stared at the ground, Alex going as far as to cough. She then spoke up, forcing Frankie to actually look up.

"We should probably get back to Kara's, we're already late."

Frankie knew it was a clear, _get your shit together or so help me,_ but she still found the time to get a good look at Eliza under the pretence of getting her stuff organised to leave. She and Alex looked nothing like their mum and they all knew it. With her eighty-percent natural blonde hair and blue eyes, she looked more like Kara if anything, which made no sense.

They walked in relative silence down to Alex's borrowed DEO car (that Frankie later found out Alex had pretended was hire for Eliza's sake) and Frankie got situated in the back seat. They still hadn't spoken since they left her office, so to fill the awkward silence, Alex turned on the radio. Which turned out to be a huge mistake.

 _"Supergirl. The blue and red abscessed tooth in the otherwise gleaming smile that is National City."_

Frankie immediately recognized the voice as radio presenter, Leslie Willis, best known for shitting on everyone else's parades.

 _"And that hideous, rejected-from-the-Olympics figure skating outfit she wears? I mean a skirt and tights? Puh-lease."_

Frankie had only known Winn for a few weeks, but already, she knew that he'd made the suit. And to be honest, she felt pretty bad that his design was being crapped on over city-wide radio. The three of them sat in the car, uncomfortably moving through traffic until Willis brought up Kara's sexuality.

Alex had never seemed more excited to listen to Christian rock after that.

* * *

 _Ahh, Thanksgiving._

Frankie always loved Thanksgiving, although that might have been because she hadn't spent one with Eliza in several years. But when the big day rolled around, she could tell that she wasn't the only one who was nervous. Kara kept fiddling with her glasses and Alex was definitely going hard on the wine. Even Winn, who Kara had invited so that he could 'not be alone' was playing with his hands under the table.

The only person who seemed completely at ease to Frankie was Eliza.

"Kara, your oven's not the best," Eliza said, gesturing to the turkey. "Would you mind giving it a quick five seconds or so?"

"Yeah sure," Kara lowered her glasses and two beams of blue light shot from her eyes. Frankie was still amazed by her powers. She was literally using heat vision to warm up a turkey. Why was that so awesome?

When she finished, Kara put her glasses back on her nose. Winn laughed a little and said, "She comes in handy."

"I have to admit, the first time she did it I was a little worried. What if we were all eating radioactive turkey?"

Everybody started laughing, a little awkwardly yes, but laughing nonetheless. From the seat next to her at the table, Winn picked up his glass of water, taking a small sip.

"It's no worse than the microwave, we'll all live." Alex - halfway to drunk before seven thirty - Danvers deadpanned, making the entire room go silent.

"Alex, you're having a lot of fun, let's get some food in you."

Alex glared at Eliza before Winn jumped in.

"Yeah, everything looks great." Frankie smiled into her plate. Seeing this, Winn decided to continue. "Especially the pie."

A grateful look from Kara made Winn smile giddily at the floor, something that Frankie definitely didn't miss.

"Oh yes. That is the best pie in the galaxy. Or so I am told."

"So before we eat," Kara interrupted before things could get too out of hand between Alex and Eliza. "I thought it would be nice if we went around, and shared what we were grateful for, or any other feelings that we might want to share with family and friends. So, let's share."

Alex shifted pointedly in her seat. No one spoke.

"Ok, I'll go first. I'm grateful for everyone here. My best friend in the entire world," Kara said, gesturing to Winn. "Both of my amazing sisters who have always had my back," Frankie and Alex exchanged looks with each other. "And the woman who always treated me like a daughter." Frankie quickly noticed that Eliza's compliment from Kara had been much more genuine than the other two, _but she didn't care._

"Thank you, sweetie."

Kara smiled, and Alex gave yet another half-drunken scowl.

"Alex, do you want to go next?"

"Nope."

"Ok, well. Frankie, why don't you go?"

Just as Frankie was about to say that she was grateful that there was going to be food, Kara's phone rang and she stood up to answer it, apologizing quickly.

"Sorry, it's James."

Frankie could sense Winn tensing next to her and she patted his knee sympathetically. Kara left to her bedroom for some privacy, and the table was filled with an awkward silence thick enough to cut with a machete.

"Thanksgiving call, that's nice." Winn refolded his napkin on his lap and Frankie watched him, torn between feeling bad for him and trying not to laugh because of the situation he'd gotten himself into. Torn that was, until she felt her own phone buzz from her pocket. She quickly pulled it out, trying and failing to be subtle about it, and saw a new message from Brad.

 **Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Have a fun and safe day.**

It was clearly a mass text that he'd sent to everyone on his phone, but the thought was still there. It was nice.

To fill the silence left by Kara's absence, Winn started making small talk with Eliza about her job. While she began to ramble on about how _'scientist is a general term, dear'_ , Frankie spied Alex pouring herself another glass of wine.

Just as Eliza started carefully explaining exactly what a bio-engineer's job was, Alex cleared her throat.

"There's something that I have to tell you," Alex said, placing her glass back on the table.

"Ok, is everything alright."

"When I was in Stanford, I was doing research in genetic engineering. And my work and connection to Kara came under scrutiny. I was recruited by the government." Realising where Alex was going with the whole _"I have to tell you something"_ spiel, Frankie quickly put her phone away, sharing a look with Winn.

Alex began blurting out about the DEO, making Eliza look as though someone had just stolen the last potato from the plate, which was the last reaction Frankie had expected her to have. She'd have thought that Eliza would be at least more vocal with her concerns, cutting Alex off mid-sentence. All the talking from Alex's part made her wonder why the hell she had thought it would be a good idea to say this stuff now, especially when they hadn't eaten yet.

Kara walked back into the scene, probably having heard what was going on. Alex spotted her and quickly gestured to her, making Kara stop in confusion.

"That's my job, mum. I look after her."

Eliza stood up, making Winn shrink slightly in his seat. Frankie thought about getting him to help her carve the turkey so that they could escape together, but thought harder when Eliza started yelling.

"Are you out of your mind?"

"Oh, here we go."

"How could you do this Alexandra?"

 _Ooo, Alexandra. That's a big card to play. So early on, too._ Clearly, Kara had the same idea because she leaned down and whispered to Winn, "She called her Alexandra, this is going to get ugly."

Alex stood as well so as to get full access to her hands. "How could I do what? Devote my entire life to watching over Kara? Well, I dunno. Maybe it's because it's what you've told me to do since I was fourteen years old."

"You lied to me for years."

"Is that what you got from all that? So, Kara risks her life to protect other people and she's a hero, and yet I do the same and I'm in trouble. That is perfect."

"You think your father would be proud of this?"

"Well, I can't know what he'd be proud of anymore."

Alex turned and left the apartment, slamming the door behind her. Eliza did the same, retreating to her bedroom. Kara simply stood next to Winn's chair looking dumbfounded. Winn cleared his throat carefully, before getting up himself.

"I should probably go," he whispered. Kara made no objection, her apology the only way he could be sure she'd heard him.

After the door shut quietly behind Winn, Kara and Frankie were left alone, the food still on the table. Kara gave her a clear _you take Alex, I'll take Eliza_ look, letting Frankie fold up her own napkin.

Frankie stood up to leave without complaint, knowing that when Alex got angry, she would just ride in blind fury. It had gotten her into trouble more than once.

She also wasn't planning on sticking around to see what else Eliza had to say.

Shutting the door behind her, she stepped into the corridor and spotted Winn turning the corner in front of her.

"Winn! Wait up." She called out to him. He stopped in surprise, turning and smiling weakly at her.

"Look, I'm sorry about that. Our family's kind of messed up."

He laughed. "Don't worry about it. And trust me, if anyone knows about messed up families, it's me."

Deciding not to take him up on the silent, despairing offer of discussing his obviously painful childhood, she continued.

"She goes off on Alex so often, sometimes it makes me glad that I was the forgotten child."

"You were the what?"

Realising too late that she'd never told Winn about any of her past dramas, she figured that it was better late than never.

"She spent so much time making sure that Kara was feeling safe and included, and so much time breathing down the back of Alex's neck that she usually forgot about the other child she had."

Winn looked as though he were about to interrupt, so Frankie continued quickly. "Dad was always the one who made sure I was doing ok, checked up on me, you know."

Winn nodded sympathetically.

"Anyway, it doesn't bother me as much as it used too. But even from hundreds of miles away, Mum still has a habit of sticking her nose into Alex's life, so-"

"But it does."

"What?"

"It does still bother you, I can tell."

"Yeah, well. Just a bit."

They both stayed silent, as though both of their throats had stopped working. Eventually, after a few seconds, Frankie said, "Well, I should probably go and find Alex. She could be anywhere right now."

As Winn nodded and Frankie began to start down the corridor at a run, she called back to him. "I'm sure Kara will get something to you as payment for all this, it's probably really overbearing."

* * *

 _Something in Frankie's stomach wouldn't settle. She had English homework due the next day that she hadn't finished, but she was sure it wasn't that. Maya told her that she was probably nervous for the math test they had coming up, but she knew it wasn't that either. She felt that there was something going on, something that was eating away inside of her, breaking her down from the inside. She knew she was right when there was a knock on their dorm room door._

 _Maya sat up, rubbing her eyes._

 _"Girls, I'm coming in," a voice on the other side whispered. They recognized it immediately, even as quietly spoken words. It belonged to their house coordinator, Mrs Messer. The door opened slowly, allowing the slightest peak of light from the corridor to spread through the room, illuminating the elderly woman in the frame._

 _"Frankie, I need you to come out here for a moment."_

* * *

If she didn't escape the hellhole soon, she would definitely collapse. Frankie's lungs were almost about to snap anyway. Stuck in the middle of Eliza, Alex and Kara was probably the worst possible place to be right now.

Maybe she was overreacting.

"Ok, even I'm finding this grip impressive."

 _Right, no. If Kara's feeling it, this is definitely too tight._

Eliza pulled her arms away from her daughters and stepped back, straightening the bag on her shoulder. Alex and Kara both smiled at her while Frankie tried her darndest to look happy.

Eliza addressed Alex gently, saying, "I'm so proud of you."

"Oh, you guys, this is so nice." Kara actually looked like she was about to cry. Frankie had to keep herself from scoffing. She knew she was being selfish, but she couldn't help it. It wasn't like Eliza had made an effort for _her_ comfort over the holidays.

"I'm proud of you too, Supergirl. But from what I see on the news, there is room for improvement."

"Wow. That is not an unqualified compliment, which... is progress for us, but not fun for me."

"Well," Alex said, gleefully wrapping an arm around Frankie. "This is the best day of my life."

Despite herself, Frankie leaned into her big sister, grateful for the offered comfort.

"I haven't been fair. To any of you." Before anybody could say anything, Eliza continued quickly. "I have to tell you something. Something I promised your father I wouldn't, but if you're getting involved with the DEO, you need to know."

 _Aaahh. So it was really DEO business. Because when is it not._ Frankie stood up straight, ready to leave the others alone to talk in private but before she could go anywhere, Eliza grabbed her hand.

"You need to hear this as well."

Surprised, Frankie fell back and waited for what Eliza had to say.

"Your father wasn't just a doctor either and he did not die in a plane crash. That is what they told me, but I don't trust them."

Kara and Alex exchanged a look with each other.

"Mum, what are you talking about?" Alex turned to stare at Eliza.

"I've known about the DEO for a long time. I know what they do. I know who they are, and why they're so interested in you, Kara."

Kara looked absolutely dumbfounded at Eliza's words. Alex stared at her, confused. But Frankie just waited in apprehension for the bomb to drop.

* * *

 _Frankie slowly pulled back her covers, stepping over the books and clothes that covered the floor in a practised pattern. She stepped through the door carefully, desperately trying to think about whether or not she'd done anything wrong, but nothing came to mind immediately._

 _Mrs Messer looked at her sympathetically, brushing a hair out of Frankie's eyes. "Your mum's here to see you."_

 _Whatever Frankie had expected, it wasn't anything like that. Eliza had only come to see her twice. Once, when she was sick and had to go home, and once when she was there to tell her that her grandmother had died._

 _Somehow, Frankie knew that she wasn't sick this time._

 _When they reached the office, Eliza was there and so were Alex and Kara. As soon as she saw her, Alex ran over and pulled Frankie into a tight embrace, her hands pressed hard against her back. Bewildered, Frankie hugged back before pulling away slightly, looking up to Eliza._

 _"Come on, we have to go." Eliza walked over and took Frankie's hand, gently pulling her away._

 _"Wait, can't I go get my stuff."_

 _"We don't have time."_

 _They hurried out of the building, Frankie still incredibly confused, and they all piled into the car. Kara and Eliza sat in the front seats, and Alex joined her in the back. She spent the whole car ride home with her fingers tightly wrapped around Frankie's. She didn't understand, but it had been a long time since Alex had shown her any sort of affection, so she didn't complain._

 _No one told her what was happening until they got back._

* * *

"Jeremiah died working for the DEO. He died working for a man named Hank Henshaw."

Frankie's mind whirred into action. _Hank Henshaw?_ She'd heard that name before, but she couldn't register where. She noticed Alex and Kara look at each other, astounded, out of the corner of her eye. A memory was brought to the forefront of her brain, the first time Frankie had learned about Alex's real job. _"But a man - Hank Henshaw - came and saw me. He bailed me out and told me about the DEO._ _"_

Everything started to make sense to Frankie. Suddenly, she knew what the panicked moment at her school had really been about when she was twelve. She realised that the night that followed and the days after had all been some stupid joke.

It was enough for Frankie to understand, _really understand,_ that she had been missing out on a whole lot more than some superhero antics. And a very sudden, butchered explanation from Eliza was not going to cut it.

"I can't believe you."

She wasn't aware she had spoken. Alex and Kara seemed surprised too if their stares were anything to go by. Frankie found that she no longer had control over what was coming out of her mouth, but she wasn't really complaining.

"Francesca, what are you-"

"No. You don't get to do this. You don't get to show up here and tell me that the only hope I had and the only closure I had on my dad's life was a complete lie."

"That's not what I'm saying-"

"I don't think you quite understand that when your mum pushes you away for your entire life, and then tells you that your dad was actually a secret agent, it fucking hurts."

The words hung in the air like fog on a winter morning. Eliza opened and closed her mouth, trying to find something to say. Alex and Kara had both subconsciously stepped back, and now they stepped closer to each other, watching as sparks practically spat from their younger sisters eyes.

Eventually, Eliza seemed to find something to say, stumbling over her words. "Well, it seems I've overstayed my welcome." She reached behind her for the suitcase that sat behind her next to the door. "I think I'll be going."

"Eliza, no-"

"It's quite alright, Kara. Thank you for having me, I had a great time."

With that, Eliza turned and quickly hurried out of the apartment, closing the door gently behind her.

"Frankie, what the hell?"

"Come _on,_ Alex. Don't tell me you haven't thought about saying that before. You were literally acting like she killed your puppy all day yesterday."

"But I didn't yell at her and accuse her of lying to me my entire life!"

"I'm sorry, was it not made clear to you? Dad died working for the DEO! Everything about his death was a story that she made up."

"Who cares? It's not like it's going to bring him back to life!"

"Guys!" Kara finally yelled, interrupting the argument. "I think you're missing the point. Hank must know more about how Jeremiah died. That's what we should be focusing on."

Frankie sat down at the bench, scowling at Alex. Alex took another seat on the other end of the bench and dropped her head into her hands.

Kara just looked between them and sighed.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Look at me, late again. _I'm_ not even surprised anymore. But I guess the longer chapter makes up for it?**

 **The next chapter will have the livewire stuff and all the backlash from Eliza and Frankie and things because I literally couldn't fit it all into this one.**

 **Also sorry if there are any inaccuracies with the whole Thanksgiving thing, I live in Australia and have not celebrated the holiday once. I'm literally going off a few google searches and the Thanksgiving episodes of F.r.i.e.n.d.s.**

 **K** bye **.**


	13. Chew Barka

"Ok, turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potato, and three slices of pie. Payment in full for putting up with my crazy family."

Winn stared at the containers Kara had dumped in front of him, mouth falling open at the sight of so much food.

"Woah. Thanks! You know, Frankie told me that I may get a little gratuity for the night but this is something else, Kara."

They both laughed. Kara gestured to the containers, prompting Winn to grab them from where she'd set them down. They turned and started back walking to their desks together, Winn clearing his throat.

"Hey, so I never got to tell you what I was thankful for."

"Well, you were in the middle of a war zone."

Winn stopped, forcing Kara to turn back and face him.

"My dad's in prison." He said, clean and quick, cringing at the looks of sympathy Kara started giving him.

"Winn, I'm so sorry."

"No, don't be. He's a very bad person and he deserves to be there." When Kara only slightly dropped her pity eyes, he continued quickly wanting to get the real confession off his chest. "Uh, anyway, so my family doesn't really do holidays. So I mean, even with the nuttiness of yours, I'm just grateful to have been included."

Kara smiled kindly, and he suddenly felt the urge to say something else.

"What I'm grateful for, is you."

And he'd blown it. Nice work, Schott. Winn was sure that any minute he'd see her eyes darken and she'd turn away from him in disgust. Could he have been more cheesy? It's a wonder she didn't just-

Kara laughed. She smiled again, with teeth this time. She spotted something behind him and quickly stammered a "You too." into the awkward silence that had followed.

Turning to see what was going on behind him, he spotted James coming through the doors to the office. Of course. Kara quickly made her way over to him, saying something about "wine country" and Winn felt his shoulders slump. He sighed, knowing from experience that Kara would probably forget he was there in a few minutes anyway. He turned and awkwardly made his way to the copier room, still holding the boxes of food Kara had given him.

Kara stood for a few more minutes, trying to listen to what James was telling her about artisanal wines but she couldn't concentrate. His shirt was just that slight bit too tight and she could see the definition to his arms and shoulders. And his eyes-

"Kara?"

"Huh?"

"Are you ok? You kind of zoned out for a second there."

"Yeah no, I-"

A conversation from Ms Grant's office cut her off.

"I caught your broadcast the other day. I warned you about going after Supergirl."

Turning, Kara saw someone sitting in the chair in front of the desk. James followed Kara's eyes and saw her too.

"Leslie Willis."

"What is she doing in Ms Grant's office?"

James looked at her, whispering conspiratorially. "You have super-hearing."

Kara mentally slapped herself and made her way to her desk, trying her best to look like she wasn't listening to the conversation at hand.

"You're always warning me about something, that's our dynamic. You tell me I'm crossing a line, then a week later, there's a new line to cross."

"I discovered you in that shoebox of a radio station, I mentored you to the best of my ability, and for the most part, I'm proud of that. But going after a young girl, insulting her body, how she dresses, her sexuality-"

"Lack of sexuality."

Kara frowned. She had listened to the segment that she knew they were talking about, but she hadn't made it that far.

"And last time I checked, as long as I delivered you certain ratings, you didn't care what sacred cows I went after. So why is she different."

Leslie spat the word "she" so aggressively, Kara was tempted to check that she hadn't managed to silently turn into a dragon.

"I named her, Leslie. I am doing everything I can to cultivate a relationship between Supergirl and CatCo. If I could legally adopt her, I would."

OK gross, Kara thought. She pulled a stack of papers from a drawer under her desk so as to further aid the illusion of productivity.

"I read your article, Cat. You're just as hard on her as I am."

"Supergirl is off the table, effective immediately."

"What, you're dictating my content now?"

"Yes. Supergirl is changing the conversation of National City. People don't want your brand of negativity anymore, Leslie. They want hope, optimism, positivity."

"You're a hypocrite, Cat."

"And you're finished, Leslie. I'm transferring you to traffic chopper. You'll be National City's highest paid traffic reporter."

"You do this, and you will regret it."

"Rush hour starts at four thirty. If you're not in the Cat-Copter before it goes up, you'll be speaking to my lawyer. And you'd better take some Dramamine. It looks like it's going to be a bumpy ride."

Leslie stormed out of Ms Grant's office, just as a flash of lightning burst through the whole office. Kara sighed, knowing she was about to have to deal with an angry Ms Grant.

"Keira!"

* * *

Frankie hated storms. They were loud and inconvenient and made all the lights go out sometimes. She knew that, for the most part, Kara hated them too because she couldn't fly, and they brought back unwanted memories of exploding planets.

They had an arrangement, her and Kara. They would go to whoever's apartment was closest and just sit under a blanket drinking hot chocolate with a soft jazz playing in the background. But Kara had texted, saying that she wasn't going to make it out of the office in time. And since she definitely wasn't going to talk to Alex, Louise was out of town and she really didn't want to be alone, there was only one person left she could call.

"You've reached Winn Schott, how can I help?"

"Hey Winn, it's Frankie." She smiled. Just being able to talk to someone was making her feel better.

"Hey, Frankie! What's up?"

"I was just wondering," Frankie began, finding her hair between the tips of her fingers. "Are you by any chance at your place and in any position to hang out?"

She stood, absentmindedly pacing the kitchen floor, waiting for his response.

"Umm, yeah! Totally. Just thinking though, do you want me to come over to yours? It's pretty nasty outside."

Frankie took a moment to consider.

Nope, she definitely wanted to see where he lived. Which sounded a lot less creepy the first time.

"No, it's all cool. My place is a mess anyway." She stopped quickly, a thought popping into her mind. "I mean unless you don't want me to come over, I basically just invited myself over-"

"Frankie, dude. It's cool. I'm sending you the address. Whenever you're ready."

Frankie smiled widely. Maybe storms weren't so bad after all.

* * *

Nope. She was wrong. Storms were officially the worst thing in the world. After her Uber was late and she stood in the rain for fifteen minutes, they seemed to stop at every single red light on the way to Winn's apartment and she was definitely running wildly late.

When they pulled up next to the building, she got out quickly and thanked the driver just as another clap of thunder rolled through the city. It was followed almost immediately by a huge bolt of lightning that lit up the entire sky. It was getting worse and worse the more time that passed.

She shuddered just wrapped her coat more tightly around her, quickly making her way into the lobby.

When five minutes later, Winn opened his door to a nearly sopping wet and shivering Frankie, she was relieved.

He stood confusedly for a few seconds, staring at the water dripping off of Frankie.

"Hi."

He seemed to come to his senses quickly, apologizing over and over again and pulled her into his apartment.

"I'll go get a towel just, wait here for a second."

He left through a door to Frankie's right and it gave her a minute to check out his apartment. The first thing she noticed was that it was warm, very much appreciated, and the second thing was that it was exactly how she'd imagined it.

There were three large bookshelves, all jampacked with video game and movie merchandise. Several shelves actually held books, and to Frankie's surprise, there were quite a number of classics and things she hadn't read since high school. A desk in the corner was covered in several monitors and hard drives and the floor next to the tv held an impressive amount of Disney movies and movie musicals. Frankie could only guess that he kept his more prized movie obsessions in a more secure location.

Looking around, she could see several framed pictures of him and Kara, him and his favourite celebrities and even some that could only be what Kara would call smol baby Winn. She walked over to one of these photos and picked it up, admiring the bowl cut and the huge German Shepperd next to him. They were in some kind of shed, with farm equipment and a tractor in the background. Little Winn stood with a wide grin that was missing several teeth. He was squinting and holding a hand up to his eyes, shielding them from the bright sun. He couldn't have been older than six in the picture, but nevertheless, he still had the same wide smile, the same grey-blue eyes. The same fashion sense.

Footsteps behind her caused her to turn and she made eye contact with Winn, who was holding one of the fluffiest towels she'd ever seen.

"Sorry I took so long, just had to grab this from the dryer."

He then noticed the frame in her hands and raised a playful eyebrow.

"You doing a little snooping around?"

"I couldn't help it. You left me alone in a new room, it's what I do. Plus you were an adorable child."

Winn frowned, scoffing, and put a hand over his heart in mock anger. "Why the past tense? I thought we were friends?"

Frankie grinned, watching him move closer to see which photo she was holding. He smiled, clearly thinking back to when it was taken.

"Oh yeah, that one. That was taken when we still lived in Texas."

"You lived in Texas?"

"Yeah, 'till I was seven. We moved here when Dad got his toy company."

"Your dad owns a toy company?"

"Did. He's not really in charge anymore."

She noticed the grin fading off his face at the mention of his father, so Frankie didn't say anything else about it.

"Besides, that dog was one of the best things that ever happened to me. We called him Chew Barka."

She laughed so much that she barely noticed the next flash of lightning.

* * *

"Takeout for Danvers." The familiar warmth of Noonan's was almost as comforting as Kara's own apartment, which was where she was just about to head. She just couldn't be bothered cooking food, which she didn't really know how to do anyway, and apparently Frankie was now mysteriously busy.

Leaning forward on the counter, Kara spotted Alex making her way through the cafe towards her.

"Hey, where have you been?"

"In the office?" Kara said, confused. "I was just about to go home."

"What about Frankie? Did you blow her off?"

Kara sighed, grabbing the bag of food that slid her way across the counter and quickly signed for it.

"No, I wasn't going to make it out in time with the storm and all, and when I called her again, she said she was busy." They made their way to the door, Kara almost dropping her bag when she noticed James eating by himself at a table in the corner, laptop open and clearly busy. "When are you two going to start talking to each other anyway? It's annoying having to be your personal messaging service."

"When she can apologize for the things she said to Mum. You were there, Kara. You heard the way she was talking to her!"

Frowning, Kara stopped. She turned to Alex, being extra careful of her next choice of words. "Have you thought about the fact that maybe, she was right?"

Alex glared at her.

"I mean," Kara added quickly. "Put yourself in her shoes. You've been second best all your life until suddenly, someone else shows up and you're now third best. You get sent away to a school literally two hours from your home and the only person who ever visits you dies suddenly. Twelve years later you find out that your mum has been lying to you about it and he actually died working for the same secret organization that your two sisters have been secretly a part of for months without telling you."

When she said it out loud, Kara was pretty sure she'd been the worst sister in the world.

Alex just groaned. "I mean, yeah, I guess."

"I think we should all sit down, Skype Eliza, and just talk this out."

Alex shook her head determinedly.

"Nope, I've done enough feelings for today."

They reached the door and stepped onto the street, shivering in the freezing air.

Suddenly, everyone on the sidewalk started screaming. Confused, Kara looked up into the sky and saw a helicopter spiralling dangerously out of control.

"Kara,"

"Clear the sidewalk."

Alex nodded and started yelling at all the people on the street to move, but Kara wasn't listening. She was too busy figuring out the speed of the wind and how long it would be before the helicopter crashed. She sprinted into an alley, changing into her suit as she went with lightning fast speed, and took off into the sky.

As she got closer, she realised that it was the CatCopter Ms Grant had sent Leslie Willis up in to cover the traffic for.

Bits of the helicopter were flying off in speeding bullets and Kara dodged and weaved around them. She sped up even faster and heard a yell come from inside the copter. The rain was coming down hard and made it difficult for her to see, but she just made out the form of someone falling out of the cabin.

Redirecting her focus to catching the person, she put on a burst of speed and just managed grab him in her arms, shooting back down and placing him gently on the ground before taking off once more. This time, she put her full attention on the CatCopter.

She watched it spin faster and faster, careening straight towards a building. She willed herself to go faster, to go harder, but the wind was against her and the rain was pelting at her face, dragging her down. She could hear Leslie's screams coming from the cabin, and Kara used that to her advantage, giving herself momentum to propel forward.

She reached the helicopter just in time, throwing her hands against the cabin and pushing back against the force of it, using brute strength to keep it from moving.

She looked inside, making sure that Leslie was ok.

"You."

Yep, definitely ok, Kara thought.

Kara held out her arm, watching Leslie eye her darkly. "Grab my hand."

Despite the glower, Leslie took it. And the moment their hands touched, another clap of thunder crashed through the sky and a bolt of lightning lit up the storm-darkened city. It was only a split second, but the light seemed far too close and the next thing Kara knew, she felt as though a laser had shot through her body. It passed from her head, all the way to her fingertips, and she could immediately tell that Leslie was feeling it too.

It didn't hurt. Not at all. But it was hot. And it felt like everything was on fire, but it still didn't hurt.

When the sensation finally finished, Kara let go of Leslie's hand, who slumped back in her chair, unconscious.

* * *

"Betcha they're good, why shouldn't they be? Their one mistake was giving up me."

Frankie was confused. Musicals just didn't make any sense to her. Why the hell would people just burst out into song randomly? How did everyone know the lyrics and choreography?

Kara had always said it was 'the magic of musicals' but that was even more perplexing.

For those reasons, Frankie had tried to steer clear of musicals. Sure, she'd watched a few before since Kara absolutely adored them, but she hadn't really liked them all that much.

So when Winn found out that she'd never seen Annie, he sat her down and put it on straightaway. It also became apparent that he knew every single word and was not afraid to belt the songs at the top of his lungs. Although Frankie wasn't entirely complaining. He could definitely sing.

Her phone started vibrating from somewhere under her, so she reached to try and find it, eventually closing her hand around it. She checked the caller id and saw Brad's name.

"Uh, I should- I should probably take this."

Winn looked away from the screen and smiled kindly.

"Yeah, ok. You can use my bedroom if you want. Just through that door over there."

Frankie got up from the couch and maneuvered her way into the bedroom, being careful not to knock any of the mountains of snacks Winn had found off the coffee table. On the way, she opened the call.

"Brad, hi!"

"Hey Frankie, I hope you're alright?"

"Yeah, I'm good, doing well. How about you? How's the kids?"

"The who now?"

"It's, the, uhm... Don't worry about it. Anyway, what are you up to?"

"Just calling to say that I had a really great time the other night, and I was wondering if you wanted to do it again sometime?"

Frankie smiled because, yes, she too had enjoyed the date.

"I'd be happy too."

"Sweet."

A giddy smirk broke out on her face. He was honestly adorable.

"I'm looking forward to it."

After a few minutes of light conversation, Frankie hung up and went back into the living room. Winn was packing up, lightly banging whatever was in his hands along to the choreographed cleaning song that was happening on screen.

"You having fun?"

He mustn't have heard her come back because he jumped about a foot in the air and almost dropped everything he was holding.

"Shit, dude. You scared the crap out of me."

"Yeah, not sorry."

He dumped all of the rubbish into the bin before going back to the couch, patting the spot next to him. Frankie took his lead and sat down as well, pulling the blanket from her side onto both of them.

They watched in silence for another hour, Winn only pointing out the most important facts before Frankie began to feel tired. She pulled her legs under her, curling up onto the couch cushions. Winn looked over at her and checked his watch.

"Do you wanna stay here tonight?"

"Huh?"

"It's kind of nearly twelve thirty."

"Shit."

Winn shrugged. "I really don't care if you stay, it'd be a hell of a lot easier for you."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Of course." He looked at how wrapped up she was and smiled gently. "You can take my bed and I'll sleep out here."

Frankie frowned, sticking her bottom lip out like a toddler.

"No. That's not happening. I'm staying out here. You get your own bed."

Winn shrugged, standing up and turning off the tv. "Only if you're so passionate about it."

"I am."

"Well then, that settles it." He started making his way to his room, turning off the lights on the way. "If you need anything, come get me. I'll probably be up for another hour or two anyway."

"Night, Winn."

"Night, Frankie."

* * *

"And now for the latest on Leslie Willis, the shock-jock National City loves to hate."

Kara watched from her spot next to Alex. It was late, she hadn't heard from Frankie since they'd ditched their plans and every time she called it went to voicemail. Alex hadn't seemed concerned, saying that she was probably still asleep. As much as she was worried, Kara couldn't argue with that logic, given that she'd gotten the call to come into the DEO at some ungodly hour of the morning.

"Willis is currently in a coma at National City general, although her fate would have been much more grim had it not been for the timely arrival of Supergirl."

Hank appeared from a corridor and Kara subconsciously stood straighter. He'd been doubting her recently, and she had no clue why. She knew she needed a way to prove herself, and judging by his stride, it couldn't come soon enough.

"Danvers, Supergirl." They both nodded to him in turn, watching him move to the other side of Alex.

"We've received word of Leslie Willis attacking CatCo."

Kara opened her mouth to say something but was quickly vetoed by Hank.

"Cat Grant is fine, a little shaken, but not hurt. She broke several expensive statues, however, and did a lot of damage to the office."

Kara, still shocked by the news that her office and boss had been attacked by someone was literally just confirmed two minutes before to be in a coma, didn't answer. Alex did for her.

"I thought she was incapacitated."

"She was, but the statement Cat gave says that she came back as someone calling herself 'Livewire' and even worse, she has electricity pouring out of her fingertips."

"She has what now?"

"The electric shock she got from the lightning bolt must have had some change to the structure of her nerves."

Kara looked at Alex, who shrugged. "I learnt a lot about it back in the day."

"Fortunately, the tech team has had the opportunity to do some research and they came up with this," Hank said, placing a small metal box lightly on the desk.

"Lightning in a box."

"Lightning in a box?"

"Well, technically lightning in a portable industrial sized capacitor."

Alex looked satisfied, so Hank continued.

"Open it up, get it underneath her, close it again. All of the electrical currents will be drawn inside of it. She'll be temporarily broken down on an atomic level, at least until we can get her into permanent containment."

Kara laughed giddily, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Cool, it's like Ghostbusters." She stopped when she saw the other two looking at her strangely. "Sounds like a plan."

"Based on the amount of power she's consumed, there's a very real chance that she will be stronger than you and-"

"She can hurt me, I know." Kara said, cutting Hank off. But Alex continued for him.

"Kara, she can kill you."

Kara looked solemnly at the ground, pulling her cape into her hand.

"I'll see you soon."

* * *

After talking to Ms Grant as Kara Danvers, she had a plan. Ms Grant would tempt Leslie into meeting her in the local park, still in the dark of morning, and Kara would remain hidden until it was appropriate for her to attack.

And Livewire had taken the bait.

"Where's your bodyguard?"

"I didn't think she was necessary." Ms Grant said, standing defiantly in the open, just as they had planned. Kara had to admit, she was incredibly brave. "What do you want with me?"

"All I really want from you is your skin, and it's like they say, there is only one way to-"

"To skin a cat, yes. Congratulations, you have the wit of a Youtube comment. Are we gonna talk, or not?"

"Not." Livewire shot a stream of lightning from her hands straight at Ms Grant, who ducked behind a car just in time. Kara jumped from the roof she was standing on and landed hard on the grass, dropping the lightning box Hank had given her.

It was her time to shine.

"Look at that. I guess you really did need to show up. How adorable."

"Oh shut up," Kara yelled back at her, feeling admittedly majestic with her hair and cape billowing in the wind. The moment was short-lived, the next round bolt hitting her squarely in the chest and sending her flying into a nearby tree.

She could hear Leslie laughing, but Kara just got up, running towards her just under her full speed.

She looked around quickly, spotting Ms Grant running for cover behind a dumpster. Bigger obstacle, but still just as good of a conducter of electricity. It was a smart move, but she'd better be smart enough to not be touching it, Kara thought.

She turned quickly back to Leslie, ducking just in time to miss a punch and doing a quick spin on her heels, allowing her to throw one of her own and sending Livewire flying.

She recovered quickly, standing and throwing her hands to her sides, light flashing menacingly in her eyes. She advanced on Kara, who stood slightly stunned by the show, the streams of lightning at her fingertips cracking like whips with every step she took.

She threw the bolts into Kara, propelling her into a building across the street, glass smashing behind her. She lay on the ground, dust and bits of rock showering around her and she struggled to get up, her arms getting tired from the constant electrical currents, but Leslie beat her to it.

A flash of blue wrapped around Kara's neck and she was pulled up and back across the street, finally coming to a stop right across from where she'd left the lightning box. She crawled forward, trying to reach it but immediately, her arms were stuck by her side, the hot feeling of lightning surrounding her from every side.

She was wrapped in it, unable to move, her breath coming out short. She jerked into a sitting position, grunting with the effort of trying to get out of the rope like bindings when Leslie noticed the lightning box.

Kara was risen up into the air, her feet dangling helplessly beneath her and the box was knocked out of her sight by another blue flash of light.

"Nice try."

Kara was slammed into the ground yet again and she felt her entire body protest as she fought to get up.

"I wonder if I have enough power to stop your heart."

She was losing. Badly. That much was evident. But she didn't need it to be slammed in her face. Apparently that was exactly what Leslie felt like doing though, and Kara's nerves lit on fire as she was once again hit by another round of electricity.

"Leslie, don't do this."

Kara turned her head to see Ms Grant coming out from behind her dumpster.

She wanted to cry, to scream at her to run, she wasn't worth it. But she didn't have the energy. Which was ironic considering the situation she'd put herself in.

"If it makes you feel any better, I'll always credit you for giving me my start."

Kara's face was smushed against the ground, and it was giving her a very clear view of the grass. It gave her an idea though, and she used her x-ray vision to scan deeper underground and then-

Bingo.

There was a collection of underground water pipes. Taking her inspiration from the end of Gremlins 2, she thrust her arm into the ground and felt her arm close around one of the pipes. She ripped it up out of the soil, pointing it straight at Leslie.

"I'm finishing you off."

The moment the water hit her, Leslie lit up in white light, flying up into the air with the force of it, her body writing until she dropped unconscious to the ground.

"Water and electricity, never a good match.

* * *

When Frankie got back to her apartment around one o'clock, she found Alex and Kara chilling on her couch. Kara's laptop was open on the coffee table, and immediately, Frankie knew that something was going on. The cold sensation of dread drained into her stomach.

Alex turned to Frankie, grimacing, and beckoned her over. Kara got up and wrapped her arms around Frankie's shoulders, pulling her into a tight hug. This just left Frankie feeling even more confused, but nevertheless, she followed Kara back to the couch.

"What are doing?" Frankie asked, pointing at the laptop.

"Calling Eliza. We're going to talk this out like adults."

Kara opened Skype on the laptop and immediately, as though it was planned (which it probably was, Frankie reminded herself), Eliza's name came on the screen, and the familiar dial tone started playing.

Eliza's face appeared on the screen, smiling gently at Kara.

"Eliza! Hi."

"Hello, girls. How are you."

Alex didn't seem to be wanting to say anything, and neither did Frankie for that matter. Kara glared at both of them in turn, but they stayed determinedly silent.

"I think it would be best if we did this in turns. Maybe Alex, you can go first?"

Following Eliza's lead, Kara grabbed Frankie's hand and pulled her into the bedroom, away from the conversation. The moment the door was shut, Frankie rounded on her.

"What are you doing?"

Confused, Kara eyed her innocently. "Wait, what? I'm trying to help. You need to talk about your problems."

"I get that, I really do. But what am I supposed to say? Sucks that you lied about Dad, I hope you don't do it again."

"Just tell her what you want to say," Kara said, lowering her voice. "You're keeping it all bottled up. It's not healthy and it definitely won't end well."

Frankie flopped back onto her bed, groaning. Kara joined her, not as dramatically, though. It took several minutes of unbreakable silence before the doorknob shook, and Alex appeared in the frame.

"Your turn."

Getting up, Frankie noticed Alex's red, slightly puffy eyes, and the wine glass she hadn't spotted before. The faint sounds of Kara lightly scolding Alex for alcohol in somebody else's bedroom floated past her before she shut the door, turning to face the living room.

She sat down in front of the computer, steeling herself in anticipation.

There were several moments of silence before Eliza started.

"Frankie, I'm sorry."

She blinked. That was one of the last things she'd expected to hear. Right behind "you're adopted" and "your father was actually a blue whale." But I'm sorry?

Not in a million years.

Frankie opened and closed her mouth several times, trying to find something to say, but apparently, she didn't need to. Eliza continued.

"I'm sorry for shutting you out, and I'm sorry for not treating you equally. I never understood the things you've been through, and I never fully realised that the person you've become is so much more than I could've hoped for."

Frankie almost pinched herself. Just to make sure.

"And you're not mad at me?"

"Mad? Why would I be mad?"

"Because of all the things I said the other day."

"Honey, not at all. You were only telling the truth. I was just too unreasonable to see it. You were upset and I should've known. I'm at fault in this situation. I should never have kept you in the dark like that. Or the others for that matter."

Despite her best wishes, Frankie could feel tears well up in her eyes and suddenly, she felt like a little girl again, getting in trouble for breaking Alex's window.

"So why did you?"

She saw Eliza sigh, dejectedly addressing the bottom of the computer screen with her next words.

"Because I thought it would be best. I thought you would be crushed if I told you the full truth and to be completely honest, I couldn't handle you being that. There was so much going on and so much that was my fault that I thought it would be easier if you didn't know. And it was selfish, I get it."

Relief seeped through Frankie like a warmth. She smiled weakly, still unable to fully believe what was actually happening.

"Thank you."

* * *

A/N

I ran out of ways to say lightning pretty quickly.

I'm just gonna say a huuuuuuggge massive shoutout to WolfsayerHRS11 for giving me a crap ton of tips on writing fight scenes, honestly saved my booty.

This chapter was so goddamn long and I'm incredibly sorry for the delay but we're here now and I hope that another chapter will come out this month, as per my usual unofficial schedule.

K bye.


	14. The Chronicles Of Mario Kart

The freedom of flight was not something to be taken lightly. Kara knew this well and so took every opportunity she could to get in the air. And the light breeze, low crime day and non-existent nag of her job had shaped this up to be a prime chance to catch some wind.

She didn't usually have to worry about anything while she was in the sky, but sometimes, like that particular day, she had some things on her mind. Alex had been calling her almost every other minute with new theories about what had happened to Jeremiah, and beyond that, Frankie was still mad at Alex for not taking her side over Eliza's that day after Thanksgiving. Which, Kara noted, had happened about a week before.

"Kara?"

It was as though she could read her mind. Alex's voice rang in Kara's head as the ear piece crackled to life.

"What's wrong? Radar picked you up over the city. Is everything ok?"

Kara sighed, trying her best not to make it audible. Ever since she'd joined the DEO, it was like they were breathing down her neck every five minutes. Well, really, it wasn't like she could talk. Before the DEO, she hadn't even had the freedom to get a few minutes to the sky in, let alone the whole half hour she'd just gotten before she was interrupted.

"I'm fine, just clearing my head. It's peaceful up here. Relaxing."

She could physically hear Alex fall silent, which she wasn't quite sure was possible.

From the street below, the sounds of cars scraping against each other and yelling caused her to curse quietly in Kryptonian. She dived down to where the noises were coming from, brushing aside Alex's concerned questions.

Two men were yelling at each other, throwing insults and ramming their cars into each other's. The people and vehicles around them were giving them a wide berth, staying just under half a mile behind and slowing down considerably.

"Hey! Who taught you to drive?" The driver of the BMW yelled as he over took an unfortunate car ahead of him. Kara, in spite of herself, was forcibly reminded of the Vine Frankie had sent her the other day with the dog in the car. She shook the thought from her mind. _Now is definitely not the time._

"Go to Hell you piece of-"

Kara put on a burst of speed so that she was traveling at the same speed as the two cars. She heard voices from in front of her and she looked up, spotting an entire soccer team of kids crossing the street at a pedestrian crossing ahead.

Great.

"What are you, a maniac? I just payed this car off!"

 _Hmph,_ Kara thought. He was going to be paying off a lot more than the car if she could stop him.

The cars were getting closer and closer to the kids, who were somehow completely oblivious of what was happening right next to them. They were about a mile from the oncoming certain doom, and yet Kara was still too far away.

The speed came almost unknowingly, and she shot forward like a bullet, taking a brief detour upwards to land just in front of the oncoming cars, who were still yelling at each other over the din of their smashing cars.

She braced herself for impact, her cape flying (rather heroically, she thought) behind her in the wind.

The cars reached her and she held out her arms, feeling the contact shudder through her body. She redoubled the pressure in her legs, determined not to let the cars slide any further forward, which they didn't.

They crumpled around her, her hands sinking further and further into the metal with each passing second.

The soccer team behind her started cheering, and she noticed that several had pulled out their phones and were filming.

The BMW man slowly extricated himself from the ruin of his car, holding a hand to his face, blood dripping from his nose.

"You broke my nose!" He yelled, taking his hand away to make sure she could see it. Kara quickly scanned inside the other car to make sure the other driver was ok, which he was. He just sat sulking in the front seat.

"Watch where you're going next time."

He turned around, checking the damage to the lump metal he'd been carelessly crashing around moments before. Kara could've sworn she saw smoke pour out of his ears.

"You totalled my fucking car!" Kara winced at his use of such harsh language, especially with kids so close behind them and listening to their every word.

"Before you totalled all these kids!" She yelled, gesturing to the team behind her. She was trying not to raise her voice, really, but it was hard. It was assholes like this that just made her skin boil.

He'd moved closer to her while they were yelling, and he was practically breathing down her throat by this point.

"You'd better get out of my face you-" He raised his arm behind his head, clearly about to punch her, but she was too quick for him. She grabbed his hand and pushed back, twisting his arm and he yelled out in pain. She caught the gasps of the kids behind them and she stopped. She didn't know what had just come over her. She let go of his arm.

Looking around in confusion, she pulled her suit so that it fit better around her body.

What was she doing?

* * *

The text from Alex had come through as a complete surprise.

Arriving home from the office that day, Frankie could feel her phone receiving it, but didn't immediately feel like checking to see what it said. She might have made up with Eliza, but she still hadn't completely forgiven Alex just yet.

So when she finally looked at the message, she winced.

 **Meet me at catco asap. we need to talk to kara.**

Firstly, she would be horrifically late. Secondly, why did they suddenly need to talk to Kara? Frankie could only assume that Alex meant it had something to do with Supergirl, and while she appreciated the fact that she was now being included in something, it wasn't the most convenient time for he.

But she'd seen the interview that Maxwell Lord had given, the one that bashed Kara for breaking the car dude's arm. It hadn't been pretty.

So she resigned herself to the last thing she wanted to do after a hard day's work and pulled her shoes back on, stumbling out the door again.

Safe to say, when she got to CatCo twenty minutes later, she was not in a good mood.

She finished an hour early on Thursdays, so when she did reach the floor that Kara (and presumably Alex if her watch was anything to go by) would be on, it was still full of people going about their daily work.

She looked to the left and spotted Alex sitting in a chair, who hurriedly beckoned her over.

"Where the hell have you been?"

"Sorry, I missed the message."

Alex glared slightly at her, but pulled her bag higher on her shoulder and sat back down again, pointing to the cushioned chair next to her. When it didn't seem likely that she would explain what was going on, Frankie asked herself.

"What are we doing here?"

"I told you, talking to Kara."

Frankie rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, but what about?"

"I'm going to ask Winn to break into the DEO's mainframe. It's been almost a week and I'm sick of sitting here, thinking about what could've happened to Dad."

Frankie sat still, processing what Alex had said. Break into the DEO? That had to be illegal. But, the more she thought about it, the more it seemed like a good idea. She hadn't spent much time on it before, probably because she'd never actually met this mysterious Hank Henshaw that everyone was talking about, but now it seemed more important than ever to find out the truth.

But before Frankie could actually open her mouth, Kara appeared from the elevator carrying trays of coffee and food.

She saw the two of them and quickly made her way over, confusion written all across her face.

"Alex, Frankie, what are you guys doing here?" She said, glancing over her shoulder worriedly.

"We need to talk about Dad."

* * *

"Absolutely not." Winn carefully shut the doors to the conference room before turning to look at the three girls in front of him.

It was funny. He'd never noticed it before. They stood with almost identical poses, hands on their hips, Alex in the middle, all looking at him carefully.

But no. It was not the moment for admiring their synchronization.

"Winn, we need your help." Alex said, the slightest hints of an exasperated sigh in her voice. For some reason, this made him feel sightly offended, like he was once again a small child and not allowed to make his own decisions.

It was like they didn't understand what they were asking him to do.

"To break into the DEO? That's not help, that's treason."

"Winn," Kara said, sounding annoyingly like a mother telling her child off for doing something stupid.

"No… no, no. No. OK? I'm sorry Kara, not even for you, for whom I would do anything." He pointed a finger at her dramatically. "No, I'm not doing this." He turned and started to leave, done with whatever was happening.

"It's about my Dad."

Winn stopped. Frankie's voice had been so direct that he had to. Seizing the opportunity, Alex jumped in to explain.

"The DEO found out about Kara soon after she landed on Earth. They threatened to take her unless my father went to work for them. He did, and a year later, he was dead. I need to find out what really happened to him."

"If the DEO knows about your dad, then why can't you just go and ask them?" He still couldn't believe what was being asked of him.

"Because if they wanted to tell me the truth, they would have done it already."

"Please Winn," Frankie said, putting her hand on the back of the chair in front of her. "You're the only one who can help us." He was sure it wasn't true, there had to be someone else who could… _hack into a secret government-run agency to illegally gather classified information on a dead former agent._

But before he could make up his mind, he was reminded of the conversation he had with Frankie on Thanksgiving.

 _"Dad was always the one who made sure I was doing ok."_

Suddenly, the risk seemed worth it. More than worth it. If he could give Frankie an answer, so that she could honestly know what happened to her father, then he would do it.

"Ok… Ok. I'm in."

They all nodded, smiling. Kara turned to Alex and they hugged each other tightly. Frankie straightened up and gave Winn a look of complete gratitude.

Then, Alex and Kara's phones both began to ring at the same time. They pulled them out simultaneously, Alex reaching her's first.

"It's Hank."

* * *

The dust from the many tanks moving in was overwhelming.

Kara was Kryptonian and couldn't feel it, but she could see Alex trying her best not to cough next to her. The desert was hot, musty and uncomfortable, and Hank still hadn't told them anything about what they were doing there yet. Alex reckoned he didn't know, but Kara wasn't so sure. She still didn't quite trust him.

Out of one of the smaller tanks stepped a man in full formal military uniform. He was followed by another man in regular combat gear who stayed close to the first man's side as they made their way to where Hank, Alex and Kara were standing.

When he reached them, he extended his hand to Hank.

"Director Henshaw." He said.

"General Lane," Hank said, shaking the man's hand. "What can we do for army intelligence?"

 _General Lane?_

Kara suddenly knew that this man had to be Lucy's dad.

 _It's like a party of the goddamn things._

"I need you to approve an immediate transfer. A member of your field unit to my command."

Hank looked confused.

"Who might that be?"

General Lane gestured to Kara, who was just as befuddled as Hank seemed to be.

"The Lady in Red."

Alex quickly stepped forward after sparing a glance at Kara, who still had no sweet clue what was going on.

"Technically, Supergirl doesn't work for this organization."

'Neither would anyone if I got my say." General Lane said dismissively. He turned back to Kara. "We've been developing something - an anti-insurgent combat device, nicknamed 'RT'. I need your help testing it for me."

Kara stood, still slightly muddled, when another voice rang out across the dirt.

"She has no choice."

None other than Lucy Lane herself appeared, also in formal military attire, pushing past the scattered soldiers who remained by the parked tanks.

Kara almost laughed. It was funny, really. Once again, here Lucy was in an important moment of her life, stomping all over her chance to make a decision. She knew that Lucy was a lawyer and had wanted to follow in her father's footsteps from what James had told her, but this was just plain ridiculous.

She had to remind herself that Lucy didn't know that Kara and Supergirl were the same person.

"We have an executive order forcing you to comply."

"My legal protege and my daughter."

Lucy proudly held out the said document and Hank took it from her, barely sparing her a polite nod. She flattened slightly, although she perked up as soon as General Lane started explaining it.

"It's signed by the president. You can take it up with her if you wish."

"Unless you don't think you're up to it."

Kara glared at Lucy, who for some reason didn't seem quietened by it despite being offended by Hank's dismissal. This made Kara positively fume.

Spurred on by a steely determination and a desperate need to prove herself to the woman who was probably in love with James, she spoke almost instantly, with the confidence she didn't know she'd brought with her.

"I'll do it."

Alex looked at her worriedly; giving her a look that plainly meant _you don't have to if you don't want to. We can work our way around all the legal shit._

"No, I want to." She said in a low whisper before straightening up and looking back to General Lane, making sure to let Lucy know that she wasn't doing this just because Lucy thought she couldn't. Even though she probably was.

"What do I have to do?"

"Fight my robot."

* * *

Frankie checked her reflection for the last time in the mirror before she opened her front door again. She just managed to grab her phone from the small table by the door before she was in the corridor, locking the apartment.

For the second time that day, she'd gotten a text from a sister (although this time from Kara) asking her to go somewhere important. But admittedly, this time it was to join Kara's friends for game night as they would apparently be one short since Alex was off doing DEO stuff – which in itself was another thing. As far as Frankie knew, Alex had never been to one of the famed game nights, but she didn't feel much like questioning it. When Frankie had texted her, wondering what was going on that was keeping her at work past eight-thirty and if she was ok (she still might have been angry with Alex, but she would be dead before she didn't care about her), Alex had texted back saying something about a robot. To Frankie, a robot didn't seem much in the DEO's job description; it certainly wasn't anything to do with aliens at any rate.

But also Kara had said Winn would be there, so that basically sold her in the debate of whether to spend her Thursday night playing Monopoly. Or _Charades_.

This had also confused Frankie when she'd first read the text. Alex had sent her a similar message a few minutes before Kara's that mentioned that not only Winn would be going, but James Olsen from the 'American Chernobyl' incident. The one that Kara was basically in love with.

So why had Kara thought to leave out someone of equal (or in her mind, more) importance in her text? Had someone told Kara that Frankie and Winn had been spending more time together outside of whenever they'd seen each other because of the circumstances? It had to have been Winn, because Frankie hadn't gotten around to telling Kara about it. She didn't know why she cared. It wasn't like she had to keep all of her friends a secret from Kara.

For a second, Frankie wondered if maybe Kara was seeing into the friendship too much. Maybe she was hinting at something more-

Frankie started quickly.

Apparently, she'd managed to make her way downstairs, get a taxi and give the driver Kara's address all completely on autopilot. He was now waving his fingers in front of her impatiently.

She stammered out an apology and quickly paid him before leaping out of the car and almost sprinting into Kara's apartment.

Reaching Kara's door, it was opened before she even knocked, which Frankie credited to her heavy breathing and Kara's super hearing. Kara pulled her into a tight hug, for which Frankie was thankful that Kara didn't decided to test out her super strength, before she was grabbed by the arm and tugged into the apartment.

Frankie had never been to a game night before, even though Kara had been trying to convince her to go for ages, so she wasn't exactly sure what to expect. But somehow, she wasn't surprised by what she saw.

James wasn't there yet, but Winn was sprawled on the couch, waving enthusiastically from where it looked like he and Kara had been playing Mario Kart – already a good sign. Frankie dominated at Mario Kart.

There was a random beer cooler which held several six-packs and the odd creaming soda, potato chips of all varieties were sat on table including a 'cappuccino' flavoured bag lying near the abandoned controllers that Frankie eyed with distaste. Something she recognized as the Star Wars soundtrack was playing in the background, which she had no doubt was there to make Winn feel as epic as possible while playing with tiny cars.

"Frankie, hi!" Winn said, patting the spot on the couch next to him, which she took. He handed her a remote and immediately restarted the round they'd been playing so that she could join in.

"Do you want a drink?" Kara asked, hovering behind them impatiently.

"Uh, sure. Thanks." She said when Kara grabbed her a beer. She knew that Frankie had never much seen the appeal behind creaming soda.

When Kara joined them, they started the game. Frankie immediately went for Luigi, the character she'd stuck with since she was old enough to play Mario Kart despite how lame Alex always claimed he was, Kara chose Peach which Frankie still didn't understand to this day – Peach was such a brat, and Winn picked Toad. A solid choice.

While Winn examined each course individually, Frankie turned to Kara.

"So James isn't here yet?"

She shook her head. "No, not yet. And probably not for another ten minutes or so." When Winn finally picked a spot to start, Kara quickly rushed out the rest of her sentence. "Winn and I never get the chance to hang out anymore, so we usually start about an hour before anyone else gets here."

Before Frankie had the chance to look confusedly at Kara, the countdown started and she focused back on the TV in front of her.

Kara was terrible. She always had been but Frankie had forgotten just how bad she was. She and Winn soon left her hovering somewhere between eleventh and twelfth place and sped up to fight for first. Kara's couch was only small, but apparently Winn was in the mood to play dirty and spent the entire first lap trying to knock her off the edge of both the road and the couch.

It wasn't until they reached the second lap that Frankie, who had pulled into a comfortable lead, noticed that they were playing Wario's Gold Mine, which was by far the hardest map in the entire game with its steep slopes and little to no railings along the roads.

Frankie swore as Winn sent a blue shell at her just as they started the third lap and she was blasted off the side, falling slowly into oblivion. She turned around and punched him lightly when she was replaced back on the track, somehow behind Kara, who whooped loudly and reached round to pat Winn on the back on promptly falling off herself.

"You slimy little bastard!"

He simply smiled creepily, easing his way into first just as he finished the last lap. Yelling and pumping his fists triumphantly, he then turned to Frankie, who had resigned to taking her sweet time to finish, and shook her hand.

"You should come more often," he said. "Kara sucks so much that it actually gets really boring."

"Hey!"

"I'm just acknowledging the challenge. Even you have to admit that you're not good."

Kara just gave a non-committal noise which was soon drowned out by the siren that counted down the next race.

Once James arrived three rounds later, (after which, Frankie had secured her top spot on the leader board ahead of Winn), there was a different kind of tension in the air. Whereas before, every breath that they took was full of the competitive nature of Mario Kart, now, all they could smell was Kara's deep rooted admiration for James Olsen.

Winn and Frankie tried to ignore it, just playing round after round while James and Kara talked it up in the kitchen, but Frankie was uncomfortably aware that the entire time, he was staring at the back of her head.

When they finally joined back in, James spent the entire time asking Frankie weird questions. Stuff about Midvale, what it was like to grow up with Alex and Kara, (Frankie went flying into a fake surprise box when she found out that James also knew about Supergirl), and if she was dating anyone.

Frankie tried to catch Kara's eye to get him to back off, but she was too busy ogling his arms out of the short sleeved shirt he was wearing to notice, so she resigned herself to answering things she would normally be way to uncomfortable to talk about. This made Winn turn particularly sour and shoot random glares at James every now and then, which just made no sense.

The night ended slightly awkwardly, though Frankie doubted Kara even noticed. Winn got up, followed by James, who leaned down to kiss her on the cheek which was uncomfortable to say the least. When he turned around to say goodbye to Kara, Winn stepped into his place, giving her a massive bear hug, which she gladly reciprocated. It was a welcome change.

"James is being really weird." She whispered into his ear before they pulled apart. Winn looked he was about to say something, but seemed to think better of it and instead waved, calling out a quick goodbye to Kara before he was out the door. James left soon after too, not making eye contact with Frankie, simply stumbling his way out the door and shutting it behind him.

Before Frankie could grab her own things to leave, she was stopped by Kara, who pointed a finger decisively at her.

"You're staying here tonight, Frank."

"What? Ok-" She said quickly, before she was pulled into Kara's bedroom, still confused about so many things at once.

* * *

Frankie's couch was comfortable. Or at least, Alex seemed to think so.

She'd shown up in full comfort clothing the night after the game night while Frankie was making dinner, which was a fairly regular occurrence. Everyone was always surprised when they found out she knew how to cook. Tonight, it was some form of pasta bake she'd seen on Master Chef the other night.

But Alex showing up, unannounced was annoying, because now she had to use her designated left-over serves to feed Alex, which she would normally have eaten the next day for lunch.

But when asked why she was there, Alex simply said, "I wanted to talk to you," which seemed innocent enough, even though Frankie knew exactly what she wanted to talk about.

But Alex had just plonked herself down on the couch, turned on Frankie's tv, and not said another word. So from that, Frankie was forced to assume that Alex was waiting for her to speak first, which was completely absurd seeing as Alex was the one who had come over in the first place, and Frankie was still determinedly giving her the cold shoulder.

She had barely acknowledged Alex's existence since Thanksgiving other than the odd text and the brief alliance at CatCo, which was probably not nice, but she didn't care.

"I'm sorry."

Or not.

"I talked to Kara the other day, she showed me your perspective and, all I can say is I'm sorry. For yelling at you about Mum, for not telling you about the DEO straight up, and for whatever happened when we were kids.'

Once again, Frankie didn't know what to say. She knew that she'd done things wrong before, of course, but, she didn't know how to put them. Alex had just put it so perfectly that she didn't quite understand how to compete.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry too. I know that you weren't ok with Hank Henshaw either, and you weren't the only one who, who…" She broke off, not being able to finish her sentence. But Alex seemed to understand what she was trying to say. Frankie dropped onto the couch next to her, handing her a plate of food. They both simultaneously left them on the coffee table, though, and turned to wrap each other in a tight hug.

Before they broke apart however, Alex's phone started buzzing and Frankie laughed.

"I'm still on call, sorry. Something's probably happened."

"No, of course."

Alex answered the call, frowning at something, then she stood, hanging up.

"Kara needs help. I love you, ok?"

"Ok."

* * *

Kara found herself, once again, using all of her strength to push against an arm aimed for her head.

Hank had called her a few minutes ago with a rushed explanation as to what was happening – the Red Tornado had 'somehow' gotten loose, even though Kara was pretty sure she knew how. It had been under the radar for such a long time, that the army had simply neglected to tell the DEO about it. Hank had been understandably mad. They'd left it to the last minute, trying everything they could to fix the problem on their own, but they'd apparently come running for help when they realised that they actually needed it.

And only when it had shown up on the street, threatening to kill the people roaming around.

But back to the problem at hand.

 _Speaking of hands…_ Its metal fist threw Kara's flesh one back. Not fazed, she threw punch after punch at it, watching it dodge every single one of her advances. She glanced around as quickly as she could, noting with a certain amount of relief that the people who'd been milling around moments before had all sprinted for cover. The street was deserted.

The Red Tornado turned, looking for something, but Kara didn't care what. She took the opportunity and kicked its chest plate, sending it flying backwards into a building. It crouched, before slowly standing so that its head came up last. Its eyes glowed yellow, and it moved down the stairs with careful, measured steps.

When it reached the bottom, it stood, staring directly at Kara and she couldn't help the shiver of fear that ran down her spine.

Suddenly, its legs started… twisting. Black smoke grew from underneath it as its torso started spinning as well. In an instant, its whole body had spun into a grey-black tornado.

Kara stood stunned, watching the tornado grow in size until it was half as tall as the building behind it. There was quite literally nothing she could do, and she watched as the robot emerged from the cloud, standing menacingly in front of it as it continued to swirl behind it.

The black tornado whirled off, marking a path of destruction down the street. Backed up cars fired up, trying to get away in a hurry and people started screaming, and Kara was torn. The people down the street needed her help, she knew it. Hank had called Alex the second after he'd called Kara, but Alex would undoubtedly take far longer to get there than Kara did. But on the other hand, the Red Tornado would wreak just as much havoc as the actual physical tornado would.

Making her decision in a split second, she took off towards the smoke volcano. The hundreds of innocent people were more important than the robot at that moment.

Pushing her way into the tornado, she used all of her strength to fly against the wind, pushing as hard as she could to stop the dust. It was getting closer and closer to the gathered cars, but it was all she could do to keep herself from descending in her own desperate spiral.

After what felt like hours, she felt the wind unravelling around her, and the grey air that had been all she could see dissipated around her. It was slightly surreal, if she was being honest.

With the rush of the wind gone, the street was completely silent. She was forcibly reminded of the morning a few days before, right before she'd royally screwed up everything.

Then, cheers from the people below swelled to a roar and she was smiling. For a minute, the worry of the Red Tornado was lifted from her shoulders. If only Maxwell Lord could see her now.

* * *

CatCo was still crowded with people when Frankie came in for the second time that week and she struggled finding Kara amongst the many reporters moving off into their respective areas. She'd gotten yet another call from Alex asking her to meet her and Kara here, and she was getting slightly miffed at having to use her lunch breaks to come and visit so frequently.

But apparently Winn had some news to share with them, so that meant it had something to do with their father, and for that, Frankie was more than willing to come during her free time.

She spotted Alex, who waved her over to Kara's desk.

"Kara's just finishing something up, she'll be here in a second."

Frankie nodded, reaching round to hug Alex tightly.

They were alone for no more than a minute when Kara came out of Ms Grant's office.

"Hi," She said, looking slightly worse for wear.

"What's up with you?" Frankie asked, dropping her bag on Kara's chair.

"Ms Grant's mother's in town and it's a huge deal because they don't get along and I've got to sort everything out for them." Before either Frankie or Alex could offer their sympathy, Kara brightened suddenly and continued more cheerfully. "I'll just go get Winn. Won't be a minute." And she disappeared again around a corner.

Frankie's phone started ringing from her hand, and she checked it, noticing Brad's name yet again at the top of the screen. This time though, she declined it, texting him to say that she couldn't talk at that moment and would call him back in a half hour or so.

Alex stood patiently, waiting for Frankie to talk.

"He wants to go on another date."

Alex almost squealed, which was an almost inhumane noise coming from her, but she tried to cover it with a poorly disguised cough.

"That's amazing! Oh and while we're on the subject of Brad, I need his last name and phone number."

"What, why?" Frankie said, looking at Alex incredulously.

"To put him as a contact in my phone."

"Ok, but why do you need to do that?"

"In case of emergencies, come on."

"No!"

Alex gave her one of her famous glares, the ones that could make you do anything she wanted. Frankie sighed, wishing, not for the first time, that Alex could be more like Kara, who simply had to do nothing more than smile to get whatever she needed.

"Brad Coopers." Frankie rattled off his phone number quickly.

From behind them, someone who Frankie recognized as Lucy Lane appeared, James Olsen trailing solemnly behind her.

"Sorry; I didn't mean to listen in. But did you say Brad Coopers? As in the one who went to Met U?"

Frankie frowned at Lucy as she grabbed her bag, getting ready to go.

"Yeah, why?"

Lucy shook her hand, turning to fully face Frankie.

"No, it's just… he was in my year. I spoke to him a few times. We had a couple classes together."

Frankie was confused. She didn't say anything though, not wanting to seem rude.

"I only… I have to tell you, he had a pretty bad reputation."

"What, like he cheated a lot?"

"Not exactly." Lucy sighed, as though she wasn't sure how to phrase whatever she wanted to say next. "He never really treated any of his girlfriends… right."

Frankie stopped what she was doing, a glaring heat rising in her chest. Suddenly, from behind them, Kara reappeared, dragging Winn along behind her.

When Frankie didn't answer, Lucy continued quickly, her eyes only briefly stopping on Kara, who'd come to stand next to Frankie.

"I only mean, I didn't want to be the one to burst your bubble. Just know that, he's not a great guy."

The warmth in Frankie's chest had risen to her throat, and threatened to burst out but she kept it contained. She chose her next words carefully, working hard not to start yelling.

"I'm sorry but, you don't know him now. It's been a few years. And he's changed since then clearly because he's nice, ok?"

She watched Lucy roll her eyes and leave, dragging James with her. Without another word, she whirled around to face Winn and Kara, who both stood looking shocked.

Alex appeared by Frankie's left shoulder, trying to act like nothing had happened. She addressed Winn.

"Kara said you have news?"

He seemed to start, almost shaking himself and he opened his mouth, swallowed, then tried again.

"Um, yeah. I, I think I found a lead. It shouldn't be too long before I get some info." His voice was quiet and I oddly strained. Frankie thought it looked like he was holding something back, but she was too pissed to care.

"Great. Thanks, man." She muttered, before turning on her heel and storming out of the office, missing Alex and Kara's worried looks.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Y'all had better be happy. I wrote 'potato chips' for you. I also conducted extensive research into the psychological meanings behind a person's choice of Mario Kart characters. It's been a bumpy couple of days.**

 **K bye.**


	15. The Young Lost

"Hurry up, we literally have like a mile left."

"Louise, we've been walking for almost two hours. How do you suppose we get down from here?"

"The same way we came, you doorknob."

Cold, sweaty and out of breath, Frankie was not in a good mood. Somehow, she'd been convinced to go on some stupid hike and now she was pretty sure that they were lost.

"Are we lost?"

Louise groaned, stopping on an exposed tree root, several feet ahead of Frankie. She threw her hands on her hips, very over dramatically,

"Frank, I've done this trail so often that I could do it without either of my eyes. Can you just trust me?"

"Fine."

Frankie started walking again, her legs and chest burning with the steep, uphill climb they were being forced to do. Louise kept talking the whole way up, somehow managing to not sound out of breath at all, and Frankie suddenly wondered if she was getting enough exercise.

Maybe she should cut down on the creative spaghetti recipes every second night.

Louise stopped in front of her suddenly as she reached a clearing.

"Here you go. I told you we'd be there soon."

But Frankie wasn't listening. They'd just come up to the end of the trail, and the view was incredible.

They'd climbed one of the most average trails in National City, a whole five miles - the city wasn't known for its magnificent mountains. The moment the trees in front of them separated, all they could see was the city laid out beneath them, the lake across the other side. It was a cold morning, so all of the rooftops were covered in a layer of mist so that only the tallest buildings were clearly visible, the rest falling away under the translucent layers of grey.

The birds chirped from seemingly everywhere at once, and somewhere in the distance, Frankie could hear the sound of a rushing stream.

"It's beautiful," She said, not taking her eyes away for a second.

"Isn't it?"

Louise pulled out her phone, taking a few pictures. When she turned around to point the camera at her, Frankie neatly ducked out of the way, scampering behind a tree and sending a terrified squirrel darting off into the distance.

"Idiot," Louise said, giving up and putting her phone back into her pocket.

Frankie carefully moved back out into the open with a faux caution about her before straightening up to look back out over the city.

"It makes you want to make a deep confession of love." She muttered, turning to Louise and getting down on one knee.

"Louise Jamie Morris, will you marry me?"

"Yes, yes! A thousand times yes!" Louise said, feigning surprise as she pretended to cry with happiness.

A young couple passing them stared oddly at them, causing both Frankie and Louise to burst out laughing.

"Speaking of undying love," Louise said as she finally pulled herself together, still grinning manically. "How's things with you and Brad going?"

Frankie's smile took on a different tone as she thought about the date which was scheduled for that night.

"Good. Really good. We're going out again tonight."

Louise went red with the effort of not yelling out.

"That's great. Look at you, one more date and then you can have some sexy-"

"Ew no, shut up."

Louise threw her head back and roared with laughter, several birds in nearby trees taking flight.

"Holy crap, Frank. It's gotta happen at some point."

"I actually hate you."

* * *

"You let that thing get away. I thought you were on our side."

Kara nearly choked, Alex looking strangely at her from her spot at the central ops a few feet away. She looked discontentedly at General lane, who was glaring like was in control of the entire situation. Kara hated it.

"I tried to stop it!"

General Lane started to walk over to where Alex was, waving an uncaring hand over his shoulder. Kara started yelling after him.

"You were the one who let it get loose in the first place! If I hadn't been there-"

"It's like he knew you would choose to save all those people, the tornado was just a distraction. It used your humanity against you." Lucy appeared from behind her father, cutting Kara off completely as though she hadn't even spoken. She'd never wanted to punch somebody more. Alex didn't look very pleased either.

"And now more innocent humans could be in danger. If anything else happens, you and the DEO will be held accountable."

"General Lane, that's enough," Hank said, coming down from the step up to their right, his hands on his hips.

"My team and I analysed the remnants we found off of the Red Tornado. We found traces of lead. To suppress x-ray vision, right?"

General Lane pursed his lips.

"The Red Tornado wasn't designed for combat in the army, it was designed to kill Kryptonians."

Kara stepped back, affronted. She'd guessed that General Lane had been up to some shady business, but she hadn't imagined that he would use his technology to kill her.

"You have Fort Rozz escapees locked up downstairs. Monsters. Abominations."

But Kara had stopped listening.

 _Fort Rozz?_

If what General Lane was saying was true, that meant that the biggest prison on Krypton must have somehow crashed to Earth. It would certainly explain the sudden influx of alien crime in the city.

Kara turned to Hank, ready to share a look of complete confusion with him, but he wasn't surprised. His face was angry, certainly, but there was nothing perplexing about the way his mouth was contorted in rage.

Even Alex had disappeared somewhere, making Kara frown.

Then she realised what must have happened.

General Lane seemed to have had enough, because he turned on his heel and strode out of the room, his shoes clicking on the floor as he went. Lucy was still standing next to where her father had been several seconds before, and she looked between Hank and Kara, clearly wondering whether or not she should follow. Eventually, she too turned and disappeared.

Kara rounded on Hank.

"When were you planning on telling me?"

"Ms Danvers-"

"Fort Rozz? They had _the most_ dangerous criminals in all of Krypton. And other surrounding parts of the galaxy to boot! Don't you understand how dangerous this is?"

"I understand perfectly well, Kara. We've been handling the situation just fine, and you've been even more of a help to us."

She swallowed. Hank started to move back up the stairs, probably to monitor something important, but Kara wasn't finished.

"Hang on, how did Fort Rozz even get here? When did it escape? Are you ever planning on telling me?"

Hank stopped and turned around, but didn't bother to get any closer.

"When your pod crashed to Earth, it brought Fort Rozz with it. Many of the prisoners escaped, but I can assure you that nothing bad has come of this."

"Nothing bad?" Kara said, dumbfounded. "Prisoners have been running around Earth for the past twelve years and you say it's nothing bad?"

Hank looked at her with something close to sympathy in his eyes, which only made Kara that more mad.

"With all due respect, Supergirl, where did you think all of these aliens got their powers from?"

Kara shrugged. "I don't know, sir." When Hank looked at her scrutinizingly, she started again. "I thought they were just like me. I thought that they'd come to Earth seeking shelter, and they'd just fallen under the wrong influences."

He nodded, as though he'd known that was what she was thinking all along.

"Kara, you thinking the best in people like this is going to get you in trouble some day."

Kara, now confused and upset, just nodded, her jaw set tightly. Hank turned again, but was interrupted once more when Alex appeared by Kara's side.

"Sir, Maxwell Lord just called. He wants to speak with me."

* * *

Kara bent down to pick up some metal from the ground. She knew that it was from the Red Tornado, but Hank had told her to wait until it came to find her rather than go off looking for it. Apparently, this was the most likely spot it would be in.

An empty shipping yard on the other side of town.

She could hear Alex crunching across what must have been gravel in her ear. Kara had insisted that she be let in on the auditory loop when she normally would have only had Hank to talk to. She wasn't in the mood for that.

Kara looked up at the sound of scrambling, but sighed when it was only a bird trying to catch something on top of one of the containers.

Alex had gone to meet with Maxwell Lord, and apparently he had been very helpful. Alex had come back to Kara saying, as well as trying to seduce her (admittedly badly), he had given her the name of the man who made the Red Tornado.

Alex had decided that the best course of action from there was for her to go find the guy - Marrow, his name was - and try to take him down herself, without any backup.

 _"He's a scientist. How hard can it be?"_ She'd said.

 _"You're a scientist."_ Kara had pointed out.

Alex had only shrugged and continued with her prep. She'd then turned around and told Kara that her job was to keep Red Tornado occupied until she could stop Marrow.

So that was what Kara was doing. Babysitting.

Grunts and shouts were now coming through the earpiece, and Kara had assumed that a fight had broken out between Alex and Morrow. She was worried, of course, but she knew that Alex would handle fine. Plus, she had put herself in that situation.

 _God, why was she being so mean today?_

Kara had been there for almost a half hour, and Red Tornado hadn't shown up yet. She knew that she needed to stop him, he now had the capability of growing mentally as Lucy had already stated, but it was kind of hard to do that when the offender hadn't even arrived.

Just as she was wondering if she should leave, there was a crash, and a flash of red behind her.

Kara spun around, the Red Tornado a solid dozen feet away. Its facial features couldn't move, but to her, they still looked absolutely livid.

 _"I'm entering the building."_ Alex's voice came through Kara's earpiece, but she ignored it. Hank had given her one job today. Finish the fucking robot.

She was just gearing up to fight, when the Red Tornado stopped, just as there was a crack from the earpiece that sounded eerily like a gunshot. The robot groaned a little and seemed to sag, then completely dropped to the ground and didn't move. But Kara was more concerned about something else.

"Alex? Are you ok!?" She almost yelled, trying not to deafen everyone else who would be listening in.

 _"I'm fine. Marrow's dead."_

Kara winced. She knew that Alex wouldn't want to talk about it, nor would she think it was the time. She moved to a more pressing matter.

"The Red Tornado must have, broken or something. It just slumped to the ground and stopped doing anything."

 _"Marrow was using a neural interface to control it. Now that he's,_ not doing that _anymore, it's probably just shut down."_

Sighing, Kara walked over to the crumpled pile of metal in front of her, getting a good look at it.

"So what do we-" But she stopped. It wasn't a pile of metal for much longer. It rose slowly to its feet like a phoenix from the ashes. It advanced on her, not seeming to be damaged in the slightest.

"It's still going."

From another line, Hank's voice rang out. _"Agent Danvers, what's going on with your end?"_

"There aren't any commands being transferred."

Alex said. _"Kara, it's become sentient."_

Kara didn't have any time to think about what that meant for her before the Red Tornado stuck out its arms in a whirlwind of dust and sent her flying backwards. She grunted as she hit the ground, the force, not exactly hurting, but hard enough to knock the wind out of her.

She got up, feeling fire burning behind her eyes as she watched the android prowl in front her, watching her with bright, yellow, manic eyes. They stared at each other for what felt like minutes, tension building in the muscles in Kara's face. She knew what was coming as fire flooded through the arteries around her eyes until they lit up with a blindingly blue beam of light.

The phase shot all the way into her intended target, the Red Tornado's chest. It didn't seem he was too affected however, and he moved forward as though he was pushing against an incredibly strong wind.

She felt the anger that she'd had before surge through every particle in her body, building to the heat behind her eyes, only increasing the light that was streaming from her. The anger at Hank for not telling her about Fort Rozz, anger she wasn't even aware she still had, like at Alex for not trusting her enough to make the decision to be Supergirl for herself. At her parents for stuffing her in a ship and throwing her into space when she was only twelve.

Everything moved in slow motion. The grooves where the metal plates connected together on the robot lit up, and it exploded.

Pieces of Red Tornado flew everywhere as a wave of energy flew over the shipping containers, sending Kara flying back once more until she was hunched over, panting.

Her chest felt both on fire and as though it had been doused in icy water. It took every effort she had to breathe. Faintly, she could hear Hank asking if she was ok, but her ears were ringing so much it was hard to make out every syllable separately.

She gasped as her lungs filled with cold, sweet air and she felt like she could collapse right then and there.

"It's over."

* * *

"-and I'm just so over it, honestly."

Frankie smiled, toying with the chicken on her plate as she watched Brad rant about something or other; she hadn't really been listening.

"They just never talk about how Snape had an unhealthy obsession with random pickled animals in jars. It's never addressed, never explained what they are, it doesn't make any sense!"

It seemed he had to physically restrain himself from slamming his fist on the table and a passing waitress looked at them strangely.

Frankie just laughed exasperatedly. "Keep it down, you're going to get us into trouble."

A ping from Brad's phone made them both look down, and Frankie spotted Supergirl's name on the screen.

He must have registered her panic because he checked it quickly, blowing out a low whistle.

"What? What happened?"

"Supergirl just defeated the android that was terrorising the city the other night."

Frankie sighed. Something had told her that it wasn't going to be good news.

"You following Supergirl?" He asked.

"Uh, yeah. I guess you could say I'm a fan."

Brad smiled and took a bite of his meal, barely making his mouth.

"I think it's great what she's doing. She's being really brave, putting herself out there like that. I don't care what anyone says, she's doing a great job." He said, before pointing his fork conspiratorially at her. "Although to be honest, I think the skirt may be a bit much."

Frankie actually snorted, throwing a hand over her mouth to keep spinach from flying all over the table. She might just have to let Winn know.

But as her own phone buzzed and she checked the name, she realised she might get the chance a lot sooner than she anticipated.

* * *

Frankie's apartment wasn't empty when she got back from the restaurant. Winn and Kara had both let themselves in, hopefully with the key that Kara owned, and the air stuck with worried, regretful energy.

Alex slid into the room, Kara tensing from where she had stopped pacing a hole in Frankie's floor. The hour that she had spent waiting since Winn had announced that he had actual news, real answers about Jeremiah, had been so filled with worry and nerves that it had flown by in what felt like minutes.

"Hey what's going on?" Alex said as she joined them at Kara's bench. "You found something?"

"Winn, tell them."

Winn tapped for a few seconds on the tablet he'd brought with him. He was stalling. Frankie moved closer to see what he was doing, but only saw a couple of files that were meaningless to her.

"Yeah, so uh, it took some digging, but I located a file on your father's death. Most of it was redacted." He said shakily. There were only a few reasons he could be so nervous. "Basically, he and another agent went to South America to apprehend a hostile alien. It didn't go well. Both your father and the other agent disappeared, they were both presumed dead."

He paused and looked at Frankie, almost as though he was sorry for what was coming next. She shook her head the tiniest bit, to let him know to continue. Alex and Kara needed him to finish. _She_ needed him to finish.

"Until about a month later when the other agent mysteriously showed up. Not a scratch on him. Claimed he didn't remember anything that had happened."

Alex nodded. She seemed to have guessed what was coming next. Even Frankie had a small idea.

"Guys, it was Hank."

They both stood up, looking at each other. Kara seemed to have surreptitiously melted into the background.

"These files have his digital signature all over them, he was the one who deleted them.

"Why would he do that?" Frankie wondered aloud as Alex moved to stand next to Kara, an air of defiance coming over her.

"Because he's hiding something. Because maybe the man I have been working with for the last two years killed my father."

Winn was quick to jump in.

"All we know is that Hank Henshaw was the last person to see your father alive."

* * *

 _The room was dark, almost pitch black. It was late - or early, rather - if the red glowing clock on her nightstand was anything to go by, but Frankie couldn't sleep. Every time she shut her eyes, they sprang back open again and she didn't feel remotely tired. She rolled over, pulling the stuffed dog that stayed in her room at home for visits closer to her chest._

 _She was scared. She still didn't know what was going on. When they got back from the school, Eliza had sent her up to her room without any explanation at all. She'd thought she'd heard crying coming from downstairs around an hour before, but it had stopped soon after. The house had been silent - aside from the usual creaks of age - ever since._

 _That was until there was a soft knock on her door. Frankie sat up, startled. Whoever was outside the door stopped, and the doorknob twisted._

 _"Frankie? Are you awake?" A voice called from the doorway. The landing was completely void of any light, and only a very faint outline of the person was visible. Yet Frankie knew almost immediately that the voice belonged to Alex._

 _"Yeah," Frankie said, barely whispering. Alex either somehow heard it, or just decided to come in anyway because within a few seconds, the night light that she hadn't used in years was on, and Alex was sitting on the bed next to her._

 _She looked terrible. Her eyes were red and puffy, and there were visible tear streams on her cheeks. Frankie guessed that she had been the one she'd heard crying, though why Alex hadn't thought to clean up, she would never know._

 _"Everyone's asleep. Or at least in their rooms, I don't know how anyone could be sleeping right now."_

 _Frankie stared at Alex, positively bewildered._

 _"What do you mean?"_

 _Alex looked at Frankie with an odd expression on her face._

 _"You don't know?"_

 _"Don't know what?" She saw Alex grimace and felt her stomach drop to the floor. "Lexi, what are you talking about? And where's Dad? Why isn't he here yet?"_

 _"What did Mum tell you?"_

 _"To go to bed."_

 _Alex's expression morphed from confusion to worry._

 _"What's going on?" Frankie asked, feeling her hands start shaking. She clenched them tightly into fists so that Alex wouldn't see._

 _Alex swallowed, then took hold of Frankie's hands, wrapping them tightly in her own._

 _"I don't want to have to be the one to tell you..."_

 _Frankie's heart sank. Of course. No one ever told her anything._

 _"...but I guess no one else will anytime soon."_

 _Alex's eyes glassed over, and Frankie realized that they were again filled with tears._

 _"There was an accident..."_

* * *

The walk home from Frankie's was tough, and somehow, Kara didn't feel much like flying.

Winn had told her most of the news first, only because he'd wanted advice on how best to present it to Frankie and Alex, which Kara had provided.

Be straight and blunt.

So he had been, and after over an hour of speculation, Alex had gotten fed up with wondering and had left. Whether she'd gone home or to the DEO, Kara wasn't sure. Winn had left soon after, but not before giving her one of the tightest hugs she'd ever gotten from him.

Kara had wanted to stay, to talk to Frankie about how she was handling it, because it clearly wasn't well, but Frankie had just turned and gone to her bedroom without so much as a goodbye. Kara had waited for a half hour before she deemed that her sister simply wasn't in the mood for it, and left.

She hadn't really been paying attention to where she was walking, trusting that her feet would know where to go - which was probably stupid since it had been months since she'd actually walked that route - and felt herself ram into someone, hard.

The force of it, and the fact that she was completely unprepared knocked her over and she threw out her hands to break her fall, hitting the ground hard.

She looked up to see who she'd run into, but the woman was already halfway down the otherwise deserted street, seemingly not phased by the fact that she'd just knocked someone over.

Slightly miffed, Kara stood up, fixing her dress and dusting herself off, before noticing something that made her stomach drop past the cement.

Looking closer at her hands, she could see a grazes on her palms from where they'd hit the hard concrete. But even worse than that were the small, deep red droplets of blood.


	16. Human Nature

Frankie had never been summoned anywhere before.

Sure, she'd been asked to go places, Kara had taken her out, but she'd never felt as though she was legally obligated to go somewhere other than a courtroom.

That was until Alex called, basically demanding her presence at the DEO.

It would've felt pretty cool if she hadn't sounded so worried.

After almost getting lost a grand total of three times, Alex had to escort Frankie through admin like her own personal security detail. They weaved in and out of corridors, much like the first time she was there, but now everyone was holding themselves a little higher when Alex walked past. Frankie could tell it was because she was stressed.

Eventually, they reached a room with lots of high-tech equipment everywhere, including a giant lamp in one corner, and a Kara sitting on a chair in full Supergirl regalia.

"How are you feeling," Alex asked, moving into the room and shooing several lab techs back into the corridor.

"All right. Feels normal again." Kara smiled at Frankie, getting up to hug her. "Hi, Frank. How are you?"

"How am I, how are _you?_ What happened?"

"Vitamin D deficiency," Alex said, typing something on a tablet in the corner.

Kara glared at her out of the side of her eye.

"I lost my powers."

"Wait, what?"

Kara grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room, leaving Alex alone. "Come with me. I wanna show you something."

"I don't really have a choice do I?"

Kara pouted as they moved off further down the corridor. "No, of course you do. You don't have to come-"

"Kara, it's ok."

Smiling, Kara stopped outside a door with a fancy looking lock and fingerprint scanner. She put her thumb over the sensor and something shifted on the other side, the door swinging open.

The room inside was dark, only mildly less so after Kara flipped a switch somewhere to Frankie's right and a blue light turned on from the centre of the floor like a reverse spotlight.

Kara pressed another button and in the middle of the light, a projection of a woman appeared. She looked to be in her middle ages, and Frankie didn't recognize her at all.

Moving forward, her cape flowing behind her, Kara gestured to the woman.

"Frankie, this is my mum."

Frankie frowned.

"Kinda. It's a-"

 _"I'm a holographic interpretation of Alura that contains all of her's, and Krypton's knowledge. I exist as a form of reference and comfort for Kara."_

Kara stood, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly. "Yeah, that pretty much sums it up."

Frankie stared at the hologram in front of her in awe, not missing Kara's dejected sigh. She'd never seen Kara's mother, didn't have any expectations at all as to what she should have looked like, but it was still somewhat of a surprise to be introduced at all.

"So, I still don't really get what happened."

"Well, I used my powers way too much, they-"

 _"Your fight with the android drained your Kryptonian cells of their solar energy. You are now-"_

"As vulnerable as any human, yeah. I've heard it all before." Kara's voice dropped an octave and she stared pointedly at her shoes.

"So there's no Supergirl?"

"Not really," Kara said, looking back up at Frankie. "At least for the next twenty to thirty hours."

* * *

Alex finished inputting Kara's vitals, looking up when she saw Hank walking into the medbay. He didn't speak immediately, but strolled around, examining the needles that lay in neat rows along the table, the box of medical gloves that sat next to them, the hand sanitizer on the end of the counter.

Alex watched him warily, well aware that he was stalling about something, but it seemed that he was in no hurry to start talking.

"What's up, sir?"

He paused, looking up to her. "How's Kara doing?"

"She's fine. She says she feels back to normal, her blood isn't doing anything weird, it's going well."

"That's good."

Alex kept watching Hank, even after he turned away, because he was hiding something huge from her. Something big happened and he'd yet to tell her, even though she was kind of directly involved.

Alex didn't move from her spot leaning against the wall, and eventually, Hank left, shutting the door behind him.

Alex knew that he would have to tell her the truth soon enough, but for her, it felt like that time would never come.

* * *

Winn wasn't exactly sure how he knew something was wrong straight away, but he did. He definitely did.

It was probably because Kara walked out of the elevator with a tissue in hand, coughing. Maybe.

Something else had seemed off, and checking his watch, Winn realised that she was somehow twenty minutes late as well.

He speed walked up to her, keeping his head down and his voice low so he couldn't be heard.

"Kara, what's happening?"

"There was a ten year old on the bus with a runny nose."

Winn followed close behind as Kara sped up to get to the main office.

"Ok, you're late, you took the bus and, what, you have a cold?" He asked, looking carefully around as he suddenly started to put two and two together.

"I blew out my powers fighting that android," Kara said, putting the coffee cups she was holding on her desk.

Winn leaned on the back of her chair. "What? For how long?"

"A day or so? Alex had me doing these tests all weekend to try and find out." Kara muttered, dropping layouts next to the coffee.

"Ok, I can help you figure this out," Winn said, thinking back to all of the resources he may have stolen in the past. "I still have the Kryptonian bio-analytics from Alex's DEO files,"

Kara opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by a violent sneeze, which was probably the best. Now that he thought about it, she didn't need to know how he'd gotten the files.

"Did someone just sneeze?"

 _Oh boy._

Cat Grant materialized out of thin air, bag hanging carefully off one wrist and holding her designer sunglasses in the other hand.

"Who did that?"

Winn watched Kara out of the corner of his eye and saw her turn carefully away from their boss' private elevator.

"Who among you sprayed my office with a million microscopic killers? I can already feel my throat closing up," Ms Grant said, strutting through the desks, stopping right next to Winn's.

Just as she passed Kara, she sneezed again.

Ms Grant looked at her with such betrayal that it was as if she'd just announced that she was giving away her tickets to the Superbowl at a loss.

"You, Keira? You never get sick, that's the best part about you."

"That's the best part?"

"If I get sick, I will underperform. If I underperform, then our stock prices will fall, thousands of people will lose their jobs and you will have personally triggered the next recession. Do you want to be the next Lehman Brothers?"

Everyone around the office had naturally stopped to watch, and Winn could feel them all take one big collective breath.

"Guess I'll go home?"

Ms Grant made no objection, so Kara moved forward, holding her coffee.

"Don't exhale on your way out."

* * *

Frankie's job had always been tedious, but especially recently.

Crawford was going through a messy divorce, and while that sucked for him, it was making him more and more irritable by the minute.

Which meant that he was starting even to pick on everyone's favourite guinea pig.

"Danvers, I told you this client was important. Can I trust you with this or do I have to give it to someone else?"

"I can handle it, sir." Frankie pointedly checked her watch. "In fact, I've been handling it just fine for the past two hours."

"I won't take cheek from one of my junior employees!" Crawford said, spit flying onto Frankie's desk, but he didn't make another snide comment or drop her stapler or something weird like that, just walked away, snapping at one of the secretaries who was unfortunate enough to be passing at the time.

"Junior employee, I'm more mature than he is," Frankie muttered, turning back to her computer when she was sure that Crawford wasn't coming back.

She was actually doing an important case. Some kids at an orphanage had reported unacceptable living conditions to one of their teachers, and Crawford had given her the case as a way of making up her slack in the past. It was kind of a dick move, because the kids deserved the best lawyer in the house with all the shit they'd probably had to put up with, but she'd be damned if she wasn't going to try her best to be there for them.

During her lunch break, she'd gotten a text from Brad, inviting her over that afternoon when they both got off to watch some kind of movie at his house. She was nervous, but excited as well. Nerve-cited.

 _God, that's such a Kara thing to say._

She'd be seeing his house for the first time, his home among any other, and Frankie felt that that was probably one of the most intimate things a person could do.

They'd only known each other for a couple of weeks, but already, Frankie was feeling the kind of connection she hadn't gotten in the past. The one that lit up her entire body and her mind go numb.

If anything, she couldn't wait to see where she went from here.

* * *

Kara sipped at her coffee, wincing when it burnt the roof of her mouth as she made her way back down the street.

She knew that it wasn't intentional, but what Ms Grant had said to her back in the office, about only being good for not getting sick, being told that she might just single-handedly have triggered the next national economic plummet from one stupid cold, being made to leave just because she sneezed a few times, it made her embarrassed.

It was silly, but the off-hand comments that Ms Grant probably hadn't thought twice about, and that Kara knew for a fact weren't the worse she could pull off were still leaving Kara feeling saddened as she made her way home.

"Hey, hey." Yelled someone from behind her and she turned to see James running after her.

"Hi," She chuckled, slowing down so that he could catch up. "Where are you headed?"

"Looking at a rental. I'm moving soon, so." James straightened his bag on his shoulder.

Kara could feel her cheeks heat up, despite her bad mood, marvelling at how James could somehow make a shitty day pretty ok again just by saying hello.

"That's really cool-" She sneezed again.

James looked at her questioningly.

"You lost your powers?"

Kara nodded, trying very hard not to make it obvious to the people walking around them.

"Solar flare," James said as they crossed the street.

"I did not know we were calling it that."

"Well, I mean, Clark does. You know, he thinks it fits. Heat vision, freeze breath,"

"He is such a nerd."

James laughed, smiling widely.

"Well, today I'm less Girl of Steel and more Girl of Stucco."

"You'll be ok. Just lay low," James said, lowering his voice an octave as they passed someone who was watching them strangely. "Enjoy your time off."

"Yeah, you're right." Kara fiddled with her glasses, aking another, slightly less scalding sip of coffee. "The world can survive without Supergirl for one day."

* * *

"I am Jemm, master of the Faceless Hunters, conqueror of-"

"Twelve worlds, yeah. I heard you the first ten times. It's not getting anymore impressive."

Alex watched Hank from her spot near the door. She was second in command at the DEO, she had the right to watch in on standard interrogations such as the one in front of her, but she still felt like she was out of place.

She immediately pinpointed it to the fact that she no longer felt as though she knew the man who for whatever reason had decided that then was the perfect time to check up on their most rowdy prisoner.

"-and I will expose your true identity as a coward."

Alex may not have been listening to the conversation, but she didn't need context to catch the panicked expression on Hank's face before the word 'coward'.

Hank turned and left without another word and Alex watched him go, confused. She was getting mixed emotions from him, but the one that rang truest was that of guilt, and obvious worry. Whether that was because he suspected that she knew something or because of something else, she couldn't tell.

She was hoping she wouldn't have to wait too long to find out.

* * *

The world, it seemed, could not survive without Supergirl for one day.

Just as soon as Kara had spoken, a massive rumble erupted from the very Earth itself. The entire city began to shake and almost instantly, the bridge in front of them started crumbling.

"Oh come on."

Massive cracks opened in the ground's surface, sending people screaming in the other direction. Others were shakily standing after having fallen over, all of them were terrified.

Kara looked up and saw a van skidding straight towards her and James. Thinking fast, he leapt to the side, pushing her out of the way. The van spun right into a fire hydrant.

She landed hard on her elbow, which immediately erupted in pain and made her entire body feel like it was on fire.

She'd never felt anything like it and watched with increasingly blurry vision as James sat up beside her. When he spoke, his voice sounded distant and airy.

"Kara, are you ok?"

She gasped in anguish, sitting up and holding her arm as the pain pounded through it. James noticed, looking at it worriedly.

"Is it your arm?"

 _Yeah, no shit,_ is what she wanted to say, but found that she couldn't, so just settled for nodding instead.

"It might be broken," he said, deciding that that was the perfect time to take his shirt off, leaving him in only a navy undershirt, to use as an impromptu sling.

They both stood up, Kara more carefully than James, and watched as the people around them ran past, running to get Rao knows where. It didn't matter, because Supergirl couldn't come and save them.

* * *

"Frankie, are you ok?"

Alex's earpiece buzzed with feedback as she waited for her sister to answer. The earthquake had shaken the entire city, she would've been affected no matter where she was. If Frankie was hurt, she didn't know what she would do.

 _"Yeah, I am."_

Alex sighed in relief, watching her team work like crazy to get everything back online. Her stomach couldn't settle completely, though. Kara was still out there, completely powerless, not answering any of Alex's calls.

 _"Alex, what's going on out there?"_

"There's a prisoner on the loose. His cell went out with the power. He's probably one of the most dangerous criminals we had locked up."

Watching Hank move past, she couldn't help but notice and an odd red glint in his eyes, but put it down to the alarms flashing in every corner of the room.

"Look, Frankie, I need you to stay inside and stay safe. Do not come out to try and help. We don't need you getting hurt."

 _"Alex, I can take care of myself."_

"This is not the time to be noble. Trust me, please."

Alex listened for a reply, but there was none, only a soft click that indicated that Frankie had hung up. She dropped her head into her hands, groaning in frustration. She'd honestly thought they were over the childish rebelliousness that they'd both had as kids, but apparently not. Even so, there was a time and a place for everything, but apparently Frankie was not in the mood for bothering to be smart.

It actually didn't matter that much in the end, as long as she didn't actually go outside.

* * *

 _"Just when the city needed her the most, she's nowhere to be found. The world's most unreliable superhero."_

Frankie shifted uncomfortably from under the blanket Brad had given her. The tv flashed with footage of Maxwell Lord strategically placed in front of the epicentre of the damage to the city, and Frankie noted that she could easily spot medical and emergency service workers in the background of the shot, undoubtedly yet another of Maxwell's clever ploys.

"Look at him, trying to profit off this mess," Brad said, gesturing wildly at the screen. "This is actually insane, like, I'm struggling to believe it."

"I think you're going to have to. His face is going to be plastered on every public screen for the next while." Frankie sighed, her hands playing absentmindedly with her phone. She couldn't stop thinking about the call Alex had just given her, in particular, the one thing that Alex had told her not to do.

 _"Let this be a lesson to all of us. We need to rely on ourselves, not the government, not aliens in capes."_

"Jeez, he's really laying into Supergirl." Brad dropped his phone onto the table next to him, watching the tv with scepticism over his mug.

 _Don't go outside. They don't need help._

Frankie watched Brad, the relief efforts being shown plainly on the screen. People getting pulled out from under the rubble, getting medical assistance under tents.

 _Dude, it was the one, very specific thing you were told to not do._

"Where is Supergirl?" Brad asked, looking over at Frankie, who curled up even tighter under the blanket.

 _You don't know. You don't know and you aren't going to go help because you don't know where she is._

"Maybe we should go and see if they need any help."

 _God fucking dammit, Frankie._

"Actually yeah, that's a good idea," Brad said, already starting to stand up. "Maybe we can go teach Maxwell Lord a lesson."

Frankie then had no choice but to get up and go after him, trailing behind as they headed out the front door and started the short walk to where all of the cameras were set up. The whole time, Frankie couldn't stop thinking about what she was doing, completely forgetting about Alex's 'advice', and just walking straight into the heart of the danger.

In short, she should've been more excited. Before Kara, Alex had taken every opportunity to boss Frankie around, making her get her cereal, switch the channels on the tv and tie Alex's shoelaces for her.

So whenever she got the opportunity to stop listening to her oldest sister, she took it and ran, goody-two-shoes be damned.

Even though that was exactly what she was doing now, even though the only thing stopping her from doing something helpful was Alex, she still felt guilty.

Because it wasn't Alex entirely, it was Alex's concern for her safety. The safety that Frankie was now blatantly risking considering there was a vicious alien on the loose and strange earthquakes all over the city.

"Frankie?"

"Huh, what?"

"Are you ok? You haven't been answering me for like, five minutes."

"Oh, shit." Frankie brushed the hair out of her eyes, speeding up to fall back into step with Brad. "I got distracted, sorry."

"No, it's ok," He said, looking ahead to the street corner. "I was just..." He trailed off.

Frankie followed his eyes, noticing immediately what had made him stop. The street was a lot worse than the tv had shown.

Sure, there were cameras set up all over the place, but they were only getting a fraction of the real damage.

There were people crowded everywhere. Ambulances lined the side of the road and sirens rang out constantly in the distance. There were kids pulling apart rubbish, and serious injuries, even a few casualties almost everywhere she looked.

From the news, it had seemed like Maxwell Lord had been at the centre of everything, and while that was somewhat true, her eyes found more important things to the scene in front of her almost every few seconds.

It was probably the worst possible time for Supergirl to be out of action.

Speaking of, she could see a couple of familiar backs of heads talking to Maxwell Lord, and trying desperately to ignore Brad's sharp intake of breath at the wreckage, she grabbed his wrist and dragged him over.

* * *

"Jimmy Olsen, I'd heard you'd hung up your camera."

Maxwell Lord strolled over, smiling at several cameras flashing around him and shook James' hand.

James tiled his head a little too casually, clearly reluctant to be introduced. "Well, I still break it out when the need arises."

"You look familiar," Max said, turning to Kara, his eyes roaming up and down her.

"We've met, I'm Cat Grant's assistant-"

"Kara!"

Kara turned, recognising her little sister's voice even without superhearing.

"Frankie, what are you doing here?"

Kara watched Max nod quickly before he turned and moved off, an air of disapproval about his departure.

"I thought you could use the help," Frankie said, Then she noticed the sling and her eyes widened. "What happened to your arm?"

"Long story," Kara muttered and she ran after Max, leaving Frankie, James and the guy Kara very vaguely remembered as Frankie's not-boyfriend from the one single photo she'd seen of him.

This was her one chance to talk to Max, she wasn't going to miss it.

"I have to say, I think what you're doing is wonderful..." Kara said, running after him. "But, I found what you said on tv a little, surprising."

"You mean about Supergirl?" Max said, not bothering to make eye contact as he started folding towels that were covered in his branding and handing them out to volunteers. "If you knew me, you wouldn't be surprised."

"No, it's just that," Kara sighed. She waited for Max to finally turn around and look at her and he dropped the towels expectantly. "Don't you think that people need to hear a more positive message right now? Hope, not fear?"

He laughed under his breath. Kara was already more than a little ticked off, although what was new with Maxwell Lord?

"I'm just saying, I think if Supergirl could be here right now, she would be."

"Yeah. I know. She lost her powers."

Kara paused.

"What?"

"Yeah. It explains why she's nowhere to be found." Max said, finally stopping what he was doing and giving her his full attention. "She blew them out on that android. She's just a dead battery."

"You can't be sure of that."

"Superman takes roughly forty-eight hours to recharge. It's been way more than that. If Supergirl hasn't gotten her powers back by now, there's a good chance she never will."

Kara was pretty much fuming by that point. She turned back to look at James, saw him awkwardly trying to not look at Frankie and Brad. She faced Max again, ready to chew him out, even going as far as to mentally prepare what she was going to say, but before she could deliver her masterfully crafted response, and a young woman ran up to them.

She was crying.

"Help!" She yelled, stopping right in front of them. "Please, my dad needs help over there."

Kara and Maxwell looked at each other, silently agreeing to put whatever was going on on hold, and followed the woman as she led them away.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Hi so I know this is late, exams are a bitch. Also, a 30 day Supergirl challenge happened on my AO3,** **I promise I haven't been completely inactive heheh**

 **I'm gonna try and throw the 'chapter a month' schedule away now that I'm done with school for the year, but we'll see how that goes.**

 **K bye.**


	17. The Last Son of Mars (Part I)

Frankie watched Kara and Lord from where she stood with Brad and James. Whatever they were talking about, it was making Kara more and more upset by the minute.

She looked around, not able to stop watching the relief efforts and listening to the people near enough to hear. There were so many stories of tragedies unfolding around them and yet no one was associating with each other.

Frankie was so sure that all a lot of people needed was some positive news and hope, but with Kara, the public beam of sunshine and happiness not around to spread it, she was somewhat fascinated by the way that people had forgotten how to be positive themselves.

Brad moved to stand closer to her, eyeing James out of the corner of his eye.

"Look, there's a couple over there that looks like they could use a hand. You interested in coming?"

Frankie looked back at Kara, who'd chosen that moment to glance over at her worriedly.

"I think I have to talk to Kara about something," she said, turning back to face him.

He nodded and dropped his gaze. Frankie could see James turn away awkwardly behind him.

"I don't know if I'll see you again, so just in case I don't..."

And suddenly, Brad was leaning forward and he was closing the distance between them. Surprised, Frankie hesitated a little longer than she probably should have and tensed as his lips met hers. Quickly though, she got over her initial shock and relaxed into the kiss, letting him pull her closer.

After she calmed down, she started to feel the whole street around her melt away and suddenly people weren't having the worst day of their lives anymore and it was like she and Brad were the only two people left in the world.

Which was probably the cheesiest thing to ever grace the surface of her mind.

Now, Frankie was having to resist the urge to laugh, so she pulled back, biting her lip to stop it from shaking.

Brad looked at her confused. "Wait, did I-"

"No, it's nothing. Promise." When he still looked slightly worried, she took his hands, making sure that he couldn't miss the gratitude on her face. "I'm just happy, 'sall."

The smile he gave her in return was enough to bring her back to the moment, the sirens that rang out around them loud as ever. He turned and jogged to the other end of the street and Frankie pushed her thumbs through her belt loops, unable to keep the grin off her face.

Looking at James, she could see him resolutely keeping his eyes away from her, instead watching Kara. After a moment, she watched his face morph from awkward passive-ness to worry. Concerned, Frankie followed his gaze and turned to see Kara and Lord running with a woman to where a car was smashed into a light post. On the ground next to it was an elderly man.

Without speaking, James and Frankie both took off running and skidded to a halt next to where Lord and Kara had bent over the man. James dropped down next to Kara, but Frankie stayed standing, moving to be next to the woman, knowing she was no use with the medical stuff.

"He has a tension pneumothorax," Lord said, checking for a pulse.

"You're a doctor?"

"I did med-school in a year." Frankie would have scoffed if the circumstances weren't so dire. "He needs to get to the hospital."

"I called nine-one-one but they haven't arrived yet."

"The paramedics are swamped," James said, watching Kara out of the corner of his eye.

"I once saw a clip of Supergirl, she flew someone to the hospital." The woman said between choking breaths.

"Unless you know where she is, we're your dad's only hope."

Frankie's stomach dropped. This man was the woman's father. She could tell from Lord's face that he was going to struggle to keep the man alive.

"Damn, it's a venousbleed."

"What?" Kara asked, struggling to keep up.

"He must have lacerated another vessel."

"So, we find the vessel, stop the bleeding, right?" Frankie said, feeling very useless amidst all the medical talk.

"There are a hundred thousand miles of vessels in his body; we'll never find the right one. Unless you have an x-ray machine?" Lord said, almost tauntingly. James shot Kara a tacky look that clearly said _but Kara, you used to be an x-ray machine. If only..._

Frankie had never wanted to punch someone more.

The woman started pleading under her breath and Frankie took her hand, giving her something to hold onto while they watched.

"It's exsanguinating into his chest. He'll bleed out, go into shock and die in a few minutes."

Frankie somehow knew exactly what to do next. She led the woman a few feet away from the others, giving them space, and let the woman cry into her chest. She made sure to not let her grip waver and to remain a strong support, because while she may not have been the best at looking at people and knowing exactly what was wrong and the best way to fix it, she did have talents that lay elsewhere.

If there was one thing Frankie could do well, it was shielding others from the crushing, inevitable weight of grief.

* * *

Kara watched Frankie lead the woman away, Lord getting up to follow which left only he and James with the man. It felt like every single little thing in the world was going wrong, not even for her, but for everyone.

She couldn't fly the man to get help, she couldn't use x-ray vision to find the bleeding vein, she couldn't even get up and go find out what was causing the earthquakes.

James was looking at her with so much sympathy in his eyes that all she wanted to do was just go somewhere in the middle of nowhere and scream. But she would have to take a bus. Which defeated the entire point.

She pulled off her glasses, desperate to do something useful because Lord could play doctor, Frankie could be someone's rock, James could spread awareness, but Kara had nothing. She had no powers to be Supergirl with.

She'd only been Supergirl for a few months, but already it felt like she'd lost a part of herself akin to Kara Danvers. Supergirl was her connection to Krypton, to her family. It was her way of helping people that needed it, hope, help and compassion for all.

Lord had said that it was likely her powers would never return, but Kara knew Alex would have said otherwise. She hoped that Alex was right, because now that Supergirl was part of her life, she didn't know how she would survive without it.

She stared at the man in front of her, willing herself to get even a fraction of vision back, back there was nothing left. No familiar burning behind her eyes, no transformation of the world into black and white, only the cold, despairing, coloured vision of a dying man before her that she would never be able to save.

"Come on," she muttered under her breath, over and over, as if the words alone would be enough to stop the bleeding. "Please..."

"Kara," James whispered, moving closer to take her hand.

"No!" She cried, breathing heavily with the effort of _doing nothing._

"Kara, look at me."

She did.

"Please, stop," James said, looking her dead in the face. "There's nothing you can do."

Kara sank back on her heels, not even bothering to replace her glasses. Lord must have said something from behind them because the woman started screaming with grief and forced her way out of Frankie's grip as Kara watched.

"It's ok," James said from somewhere to her left. "It's gonna be alright, I promise."

But Kara knew better than anyone that he was bluffing.

* * *

Alex sat in the common spot, eyes on her rifle, avoiding those of the agents Hank had left behind.

She wanted to be out there, because Hank was out there. No one knew what he was doing. Visuals had been lost only minutes ago, and there was a chance that people could have died, but she still couldn't go out.

He'd locked her in like she was grounded, and it sucked a major pile of dicks. The other agents were getting stressed as well, and it was Alex's job now to stop that from happening, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.

Hank had taken the neural inhibitors, the mental shields, the only protection they had against Jemm, and if it wasn't for that one small problem, Alex would have been recruiting agents as they spoke.

But she knew she couldn't.

Alex couldn't help, and the entire fate of the DEO had been left to the one man she trusted least in the current day.

* * *

 _Four children under the age of fifteen reported to teachers at National City High School that their carers were verbally and mentally abusive. All children who lived in the orphanage have been temporarily moved to the custody of government workers while the case is investigated._

Frankie sighed, dropping the file back onto her desk. She didn't know how she was going to finish the assignment. There was so little evidence to support the kids and there were so many holes in the story, but she was convinced that they were telling the truth. It was likely that they'd forgotten stuff over the years that they told teachers about and there were going to be things that didn't add up, they were all so young.

Plus, she felt like this was her chance to finally get to do something important in her life of superheroes and secret agents.

The office was pretty much deserted after hours, which made it that much more relaxing for her. She was stressed, there was no point in denying it. Kara was powerless, Alex was busy with the DEO and she couldn't tell Brad about any of it because the release form she'd signed for Alex stated that to anyone that wasn't immediate family, the DEO didn't exist at all.

For whatever reason, her idea of a perfect escape was helping other people with their own problems.

Her phone buzzed from the other side of her desk, and she checked it to see Alex calling.

Picking up the phone, she answered it quickly.

"Alex, what's up?"

 _"So that alien that escaped? He's locked in here with us."_

Slightly confused, Frankie frowned. "Are you ok? Why are you calling me and not Kara? Shouldn't you be out there doing your thing to him?"

 _"I can't get hold of Kara, she's not answering her phone. Plus, Henshaw dropped us here and basically told me I would be fired if I left,"_ Alex said. She couldn't see her, but Frankie could tell that she was getting extremely frustrated.

Now even more confused, Frankie pulled out the food she'd picked up on the way, figuring that the conversation could survive while she finished eating.

"So what are you going to do about it?"

 _"Are you eating?"_

"I'm hungry."

 _"It's six-thirty,"_ Alex pressed.

"A perfectly reasonable time to be eating," Frankie said, stuffing her mouth full of chicken. "Plus, you're still not answering my question."

 _"I don't know what I can do. I can't really just up and leave, but I don't trust him anymore. He came back like, twenty minutes ago and told us the two guys he was with were killed. This isn't the first time he's been the sole survivor of a botched operation. The details of this are really sketchy."_

Frankie stopped stabbing at the plastic bowl and frowned, avoiding thinking about the fact that two members of her team had died and Alex had chosen to focus on the sketchiness of Hank's behaviour. "Sounds like you want to go out there and do this thing yourself."

 _"I think I have to. I'll see if Donovan's cool with coming..."_

"Please be safe, Alex. I'll see if I can get onto Kara."

 _"I'll be fine. Promise."_

And then Alex hung up.

With a weight in her stomach that hadn't been there before, Frankie went back to re-reading the case file, trying to find something new to go off of, but again having no luck.

Not five minutes later, her phone went off again, but this time it was from Kara.

 _hey Frankie, james here. Dont have much tim e to takl, just leting you kno that karas about to do smth stupid. ekeep you posted._

Trying not to gag at the lack of respect for grammar, Frankie put her phone back onto her desk and dropped her head into her hands because when was this fuckery going to end?

All she needed was a normal, non-worrisome day.

But apparently, Kara was about to make that forty times harder.

* * *

James ran after Kara, trying not to drop her phone in his haste.

Sirens still wailed on, even hours after the initial fallout, and he tried his best to ignore them. The amount of damage on the streets was incredible, and his body was itching to grab his camera from around his neck and snap a few crisis shots, more than the ones he had already taken. It was almost golden hour and it would've been perfect, but he had to stop himself. There were more important things going on.

Kara suddenly disappeared from in front of him and he skidded to a halt, blinking. He could hear screams coming from the corner store she had been running to, and while he knew that this could quite possibly be the most unintelligent decision she would ever make, the business was getting robbed and even he wanted to do everything he could to help.

Worried, he peered through the giant windows of the store and almost choked.

Kara, in full Supergirl uniform, stood in front of two men, both of whom were armed. She was completely defenceless, and James knew she was relying solely on the men thinking that she was bulletproof and that she could hurt them.

She was in a crap ton of danger, but was too stubborn to admit that she couldn't do it.

Not to say that James doubted her, but after Kara had heard the alarms coming from the tiny convenience store and decided that, despite being completely powerless, she was going to stop them, anyone had to admit, the odds were stacked heavily against her.

And even then, James knew that there was nothing he could do to stop her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she yelled, holding a hand out to one of the men.

She had stopped in front of the door, so there was no way that he could get inside without making a scene.

The man she was in front of cocked the gun he was holding and pointed it directly at Kara. James had to hold his breath to stop himself from gasping out loud.

"That's not going to work on me," she whispered. She took a shaky step forward and the man redoubled his grip on the gun.

"Don't come any closer."

"You don't want to do this." Kara kept taking small steps forward, her broken arm clenched tightly in a fist by her side.

"There are about a dozen ways that I could stop you right now, but I don't think I have to."

Kara finally moved far enough away from the door to give James a good amount of space to slide in, unnoticed. She didn't acknowledge him, but he could tell from the tiny smile playing on the edge of her lips that she had moved the exact amount she knew he needed.

She wanted him to watch.

"I don't have to, because this is not you." She stopped about a foot from the man, not breaking the direct eye contact she held.

"This isn't any of you. We have to choose who we want to be, and I know that you're going to choose to be the better man."

What happened next, James would never have believed if he hadn't seen it with his own two eyes.

Which is why he turned on his camera.

* * *

Alex could feel herself shaking as she crept down the corridor.

Apart from the single beam of the torch that was strapped to her scope, it was pitch black and she could barely sense Donovan following on her six. She had to applaud him for his courage, going into the mission against Henshaw's orders literally blind and with only a gun each to keep them company.

Although, she had to remind herself that she was directly under Henshaw in the hierarchy of the DEO; Donovan was probably only there because she was his superior.

She didn't exactly know why she was scared enough to be trembling. It wasn't like she'd never done things like this before. On the contrary, she'd gone on missions far worse than this one. Initially, she'd thought that it was because they were essentially walking into a death trap with weapons that definitely couldn't handle the thing that they were facing, and that always brought some form of nerves, but now she wasn't so sure.

Now, she was fairly sure that it was because she didn't know who they were going to find on the other side. Henshaw had left over an hour ago now. The other agents had died. They might come across three incredibly mutilated and grotesque bodies.

They approached a corner and Alex held up a fist so that Donovan would stop too. She thrust her gun around the wall, plunging the narrower corridor into a bright spotlight. It was empty.

"Clear."

There were a lot of other things going on in Alex's life at that particular moment. Kara losing her powers, National City choosing that exact moment to go completely bazonkers, Maxwell Lord being an absolute douche-hat, it was all one big mess. Add on the whole Jemm situation and Alex was kinda stretched.

She was like, ninety-seven percent sure that if, at some point soon, something else were to happen, she would probably rip in two.

They came to another corner and turned it in the same way as before, but this time, Alex could clearly hear Donovan gasp from behind her.

The bodies of the two agents sat crumpled against the wall, bright blue lights shining from both of their temples. They were in no way disgusting, all of their organs remained determinedly out of sight, but it was still deeply unnerving.

"Clear."

Donovan rushed forward from behind her to look at the fallen agents. Alex checked behind her carefully before she followed. He dropped next to Reynolds and checked his pulse, but Alex could tell just by looking at them. They were definitely dead.

Her eye was caught by the blue light, and she reached for it, feeling her fingers close around some kind of headset before she realised, it was a neural inhibitor. She gently pulled it off and pressed a few buttons, hearing a hum come from it.

"This neural inhibitor's still working," she said quietly, looking back at Donovan.

"Henshaw said they were destroyed in the fight."

"He lied," Alex sighed. "Check the other."

Donovan bent over the other flashing light, putting his gun on the ground. After a moment, his voice broke the silence "This one's working too."

They stared at each other, both thinking the same thing.

"This isn't good, is it?" He asked.

"No. It's not."

Suddenly from behind them, there was a huge burst of bright white light that almost blinded both of them. Alex turned to see what it was, but couldn't see past the corner for fear of losing her vision completely.

"Quick, put them on." She whispered as loudly as she could, her own hands thrusting the headset onto her head.

Donovan moved to follow, but stopped abruptly, his hands stiffening.

Alex turned to look at him, but his eyes didn't meet hers. They stared blankly ahead, wide and shocked.

"Come on, we gotta move. Now!" Alex started to stand, but stopped when Donovan didn't. His body started shaking and Alex, now slightly terrified, called out his name, not bothering to be quiet.

"Donovan, you still with me?"

He stood slowly, his quivering arms reaching into his holster for his pistol, leaving the rifle on the ground. His eyes briefly lost their glazed look and he made contact with Alex, completely petrified.

"He's inside my head." Donovan's voice wavered, but it still had some strength to it. Alex followed his lead and got to her feet, not looking away from the man in front of her.

His other hand flew to the top of the gun, pushing it back down, and from that moment, Alex realised that he was losing control of his movements. She knew that things were about to get a lot uglier.

"I don't know... how much longer I can fight it," Donovan muttered, his voice losing conviction with every word. Alex moved her own rifle to a more practical position, but kept it pointing at the ground.

"Go!" Donovan started shaking harder than ever and he looked completely mad. The last thing Alex wanted to do was run and leave him there, especially since it was likely he'd now meet the same fate as the other agents, but he sounded so sure. He sounded so scared.

Trying not to overthink it, Alex turned and sprinted from the scene, not trusting herself to look back.

She ran through corridor after corridor, somehow feeling like she knew exactly where she needed to be. She hoped to all that was good that Donovan would be ok. If he wasn't Alex didn't know what she would do with herself.

She slowed down to a walk as she neared the door she needed. Keeping her gun tight, she crept to a wall, flattening against it as she moved forward. As she raised her gun around another corner, a hand came out of nowhere, clamping over her mouth and pulling her backwards.

She tried to yell, but the hand muffled the noise. Alex's brain ran through every single scenario that she could've possibly landed herself in, each more unlikely than the last. Jemm finally finding her, Donovan under Jemm's influence catching up, Donovan not under Jemm's influence and just not being very smart about how he got her attention.

The hand, and now an immensely strong accompanying upper arm pulled her backwards and against a door on the other side of the corridor. It opened and Alex fell through it, hearing whoever had her slam it behind them.

They let go of Alex and she stumbled into the room, breathing heavily to catch her breath. She straightened up, staring at the person who was now carefully locking the door with violent swipes of his fingers.

It was Hank.

"What are doing here?" He whispered furiously, advancing on her.

"Donovan and I were looking for you."

"Where is he now?" Hank said, stopping a few feet in front of Alex. Every fibre in his body seemed to shake with anger.

Alex didn't answer.

It seemed like that was enough of a response, though, because he started pacing back and forth in front of her. "You lost him. Damnit, Alex! That's why I told you to stay with the others."

"You also said that the inhibitors were destroyed. You lied-"

"Because I didn't want you doing something stupid like this!" Hank turned from Alex, apparently not able to handle the rage he felt towards her. As he did so, Alex's earpiece crackled to life and Donovan's voice came into her ear.

 _"Agent Danvers. Come in."_

"Copy Donovan. What's your status?"

 _"I'm ok, but I'm out here all on my own, where the hell are you?"_

"I thought I'd lost you." Alex said, eyeing Hank who was watching the door suspiciously, as though Jemm would prance right through it any moment.

 _"You're not getting rid of me that easily."_

"Alright, rendezvous with-"

"Don't," Hank said, waving a hand dismissively. "It's not Donovan anymore."

He reached up to his own earpiece and turned from Alex. "Jemm, I know it's you." His tone compared to how he'd spoken to Alex could've easily been a father deterring his kid's prank call. It made her stomach writhe.

There was a pause from the earpiece before Donovan, or rather Jemm, spoke again.

 _"You have only delayed the inevitable."_

There was a thud, and then silence. Alex's heart sank. Then Jemm's own voice came through the speakers.

 _"I will free the prisoners. There is no escape for you."_

Hank shook his head and moved back to the door. "We need to find a safe place to-"

Alex lifted her rifle. She pointed it straight at Hank, watching him raise his hands in surrender.

"Back away from the door," she said, making sure he couldn't see her hands shaking. "Drop your weapon."

"Alex-"

"Now!"

Hank turned back to her, keeping one arm up, but reaching into his holster with the other. Slowly, he pulled his pistol from it, and moved it away from him before he dropped it, the sound of it crashing to the ground echoing in the empty storage room. Alex moved forward and kicked it away.

"Alex, what are you doing? I am not the enemy?"

"Is that why you didn't tell me about my father?"

Hank's eyes told Alex all she needed to know. That he was guilty, that he'd lied, that he knew he now had to tell her everything.

"Your father trusted me. He was a great man."

"You don't get to talk about him!" Alex yelled, her voice cracking awkwardly.

She reached into her belt and pulled out a pair of solid steel handcuffs. She held them up in front of Hank.

"You chain yourself to those bars there."

She tossed them to him.

"Alex, come on."

"Now!" She yelled again, but louder. She needed him to understand that she was angry. More than angry. She was furious at being lied to for years about her own family, about being tricked into believing one way, only to find out that everything concerning that way was a lie.

Hank took the cuffs and locked himself on a bar, watching Alex with some kind of regret in his eyes. She ignored him and moved to turn on her earpiece.

"Jemm, this is Agent Danvers. I know you want those blast doors open. You don't need to release the prisoners to do that. I have the access code. Meet me in the control room, because one way or another, this ends now."

* * *

A/N

Basically I'm uploading two chapters right now because I wrote this one and it was well over seven thousand words which I know that I wouldn't be able to read comfortably in one sitting, so here you go.

And yes. I was being lazy with the titles.

 **K bye.**


	18. The Last Son of Mars (Part II)

"You know what, that was better than the time I stopped a holdup at a pizzeria and the owner gave me twelve pizzas."

"That was good pizza."

Kara stood in James' office, watching as he sifted through the crisis shots he'd taken that day. They were all of people. People in trouble, people being saved, people who hadn't quite made it that far.

They were really all spectacular, but Kara could tell that James didn't like any of them. He picked through them one by one, his face showing nothing more than mild pleasure at each one, but after a few minutes, he stopped at the one he had clearly been waiting for.

The one of Kara in the convenience store.

The one with her arm out, and the man willingly placing the gun in her open palm. The one that ended in no casualties and was more than she could've hoped for with no powers.

"I just," Kara said, readjusting her sling around her shoulder. "I felt so useless without my powers. I still do a bit, but that was just... incredible."

James nodded, leaning back on his chair. "You know, when you take a picture of someone, it's permanent. And you've captured the truth of them in that moment, and you can keep that. Forever." He pointed to the picture of her on his computer screen. "And, the truth of this moment is that you don't even need powers to be a hero."

Kara smiled, staring at the photo. It was probably one of the most powerful ever taken of her, but she wasn't sure if James should share it.

"Maybe, we keep this one between just us two."

"And why's that?"

"It's just, people were worried, there's no point in pretending otherwise. And if this photo gets out that I _was_ there and I chose to help a corner store rather than the dozens of people who needed medical attention,"

"But you couldn't have helped them."

"They don't know that."

James looked down, his face unreadable, but Kara was sure she caught hints of joy somewhere. "Yeah, ok. It's a fair point."

He stood up and Kara moved forward, wrapping her good arm around him. His arms snaked around her side, careful of her elbow and they stood like that for a few minutes, Kara drinking in his offered support, James being secretly glad that Kara didn't have her powers for fear of being squeezed to death with one arm.

They stood like that until the door to James' office banged open and they broke apart, turning to see Winn standing in the doorway.

"I accessed the DEO file on Superman," he said, watching them with a shocked irritation. "Basically, uh, you'll get your powers back with a Kryptonian version of extreme adrenaline."

The room went silent after he finished talking, the tension strong enough to smell. Kara and James stood awkwardly, putting as much distance between each other as they could without taking any steps.

Winn dropped the file he was carrying onto a table next to the door, then turned and left without another word.

Kara sighed, trying not to look at James and she followed Winn out of the door.

* * *

Alex crept through the corridors, forcibly reminded of the hour she'd spent earlier doing the same thing, both with Donovan and without. The walls were now bathed with red light and the air was heavy with fog. However that was possible, she didn't know, considering not much had changed since she'd last beaten these paths.

She tried not to think too much about Donovan. Somehow, she knew that he hadn't survived, and while he'd gone into the mission willingly, Alex had naturally felt guilty about the whole thing. It was kind of stupid, because she knew it wasn't her fault that he was... gone. But she still couldn't help herself because she'd lead the mission.

She'd have to be the one to tell his family.

She emerged in the central ops, which looked so different under this new apocalyptic light scheme. As quietly as she could, she stepped onto the bridge that looked over the main centre and could see quite clearly the thing that she was looking for.

It was obvious that Jemm had been left waiting. He was pacing the floor, his eyes looking as concerned as they could from under his unmoving brows. Every few seconds, he glanced up and around the room, but Alex was almost certain that he couldn't see her. She would know if he could.

Deciding on the spot that it was best if he didn't know she was there, she stayed silent and invisible as a ghost, crouching low against the metal barriers of the loft and wedging her rifle in the gap.

She had what was probably the best vantage point in the whole of the central ops, but couldn't bring herself to do anything other than watch.

Jemm seemed to sense that there was someone else in the room with him, even if he couldn't see, because he turned to Alex's general direction and opened his arms wide in an eerie imitation of a welcoming hug.

"Show yourself." His body was so dark that she could see nothing more than the silhouette of it and the whites of his eyes. "Let us see if you die with more honour than your fallen friends."

Alex pulled on the trigger. She let loose a stream of bullets that hit him directly in the chest, sending him staggering backwards.

He ended up near the main desk, which was exactly where Alex wanted him. From her belt, she pulled a small piece of plastic casing with one bid, red button. She pressed it.

Somewhere behind Jemm, a small bomb exploded and sent him flying forward again. He grunted as he slammed to the floor, and Alex took her opportunity. Still crouching low, she moved across the bridge and down the stairs facing Jemm straight on.

He turned to her, his face positively livid with anger, but somehow, Alex wasn't scared. Fighting off a giant alien was a lot less scary than doing recon in the pitch black with one torch.

She pulled the trigger on her rifle again, but nothing happened.

 _"Fuck,"_ she whispered. Without missing a beat, she reached into both of her thigh holsters. Sensing a rare James Bond moment, Alex pulled out both of her pistols, sending almost as many bullets at Jemm as she had done with the rifle.

There was a slight, guilty joy that came with armed combat. Alex was completely aware that the bullets were doing jackshit to actually hurt Jemm, but it seemed like he had decided to play along with the charade. Even his movements were stunted.

Almost completely unfazed, he advanced on her, reaching where she was slowly backing away in seconds.

He raised his fist and Alex, having no time to stop it, simply tried to duck out of the way of his swinging arm. It didn't work, though, and she was sent flying backwards, rolling over a few times to lessen the impact.

She slid on her butt as far as she could before her back hit the wall, then she stayed still, trying not to act too afraid. Just as she was getting ready to run, somebody fell, literally fell, from the ceiling. She couldn't see what it was, although the outline of it resembled a human's.

But it couldn't be a human.

No human was seven feet tall, had skin that glowed in the fluorescent red light, and could use one punch to knock a Red Saturnian out cold.

Jemm fell to the ground with a dull thud that shook the entire room. Completely taken aback, Alex stayed on the ground, finding herself unable to move, whether out of fear or surprise, she wasn't sure.

The thing was turned away from her, so she couldn't see its face. Frozen, she silently willed it to do something other than stand there, breathing heavily.

After at least a minute of waiting, it turned to one of the controls on the board and pulled a lever that Alex knew ended the lockdown.

The lights turned back on and Alex squinted, the harsh brightness a chore to get used to so quickly. But when her eyes finally adjusted, and she could focus on who had flipped the switch, she saw a man who she had both never expected, and was somehow not surprised to be seeing.

A phrase flew into her mind, one that she'd been thinking a lot more often lately.

 _It was Hank._

* * *

Sometimes bars just weren't the right thing to end the night with.

After the fiasco on the street and the explosions and Kara finally getting her powers back somehow, Frankie had had a really super fucking long day. She was tired, and really just wanted to curl up in her bed and binge American Horror Story.

But Brad didn't know about all of the extra shit, so when he'd asked her to go out and finish the kind-of-date from earlier at his house, she didn't really feel like she could say no.

Turns out, neither of them were really in the mood.

It seems that after everyone had nearly died, what felt like the entirety of National City had crammed into the one tiny bar and were all getting drunk off their minds to celebrate the fact that they were still alive.

Frankie and Brad had decided to leave it at beer, not really feeling too into the spirit, but apparently, it was too much for Brad because he got up from their booth after a few minutes and excused himself to go to the bathroom.

Now alone, Frankie settled for watching everyone around her, marvelling at how the hell people managed to get so drunk. There were literally people running around the dancefloor screaming the words to Africa by Toto when the music blasting through the speakers was a bad EDM remix of Livin' On A Prayer.

From the opposite side of the room, there was a man who was holding about four drinks and chugging them all at once. Frankie, slightly disgusted, watched as he screamed and threw the plastic cups on the ground, banging his chest like a gorilla.

He looked over and made eye contact with Frankie, who quickly looked away, not wanting to give him the wrong impression, but apparently it was too late for that and he made his winding way over, tripping an inordinate amount of times.

"Hey, wanna smash?"

Frankie had to stop herself from laughing and she pulled out her phone, trying to get him to think that she was completely uninterested. Which she _definitely_ was.

"Classy, but I'm going to have to pass. I'm here with someone else."

The guy made a point of looking around the otherwise empty booth and slid into the seat next to her.

"That's not exactly what it looks like," he said. "Honestly, I've never really seen a woman as beautiful as you before."

"From the dozens of girls you literally just had dry-humping you, I'm not entirely sure I can believe that."

He pressed so close to Frankie that she could smell the weed and whiskey from his breath, and she shoved away the hand that was creeping towards her dress.

"What the hell man? I've already told you, I'm not interested."

He didn't seem to care though, and licked his lips maliciously, his eyes darting erratically between her lips and her chest.

A loud cough from behind them made him stop. Brad stood there with his arms crossed, glaring at the man who had almost started drooling.

"What do you think you're doing?" He said, loud enough so that he could be sure that the man could hear him.

"Just getting a look at this very pretty lady." He drawled, turning back to Frankie, who nearly gagged on her drink as she watched the lust dance over his eyes.

"Well, I think we'd all appreciate it if you could step away from my girlfriend. I'd hate to take matters into my own hands."

Frankie froze mid-cough.

 _Girlfriend? What the hell did he-_

But whatever Brad had done, it had worked. The man stood abruptly, his face morphing from one of hope and animosity to one of fear, and almost sprinted away from them through the crowded bar.

Brad frowned, looking her up and down carefully,

"He didn't hurt you?"

"No," Frankie said, shaking her head and standing up to join him.

Brad shook his head, gesturing for her to follow her towards the exit. It was clear that they'd both had enough for the night.

"I'm sorry about the girlfriend thing. I read about some girls who had done it with complete strangers in bars and it was the first thing I could think of to get him off you."

Frankie thought about it for a minute. The word rolled around her brain several times over and left her feeling warm and like some creepy asshole hadn't just come onto her in a public bar.

"You know," she said, pausing and watching Brad stop next to her. "I don't think I really minded it that much if I'm being honest."

He shrugged nonchalantly and started walking again, before doing a complete double take and turning back to see Frankie not having moved from her spot next to the over-crowded dance floor.

"You what?"

Frankie stepped forward, taking his hands in her own and looking up into his confused face, the brightly coloured lights flashing across his face. "I'd be ok if you wanted to, you know, make it a thing."

"Yeah?" He said, breathlessly.

"Yeah."

* * *

"You can't share this with anyone, not even Kara or Frankie. Can you do that?"

Alex watched Hank - if that was even his name - from the furthest corner of the room, not because she wanted to get away from him, or because she was scared, only because she didn't feel like she knew him anymore.

And Alex had learned to not trust strangers.

She nodded abruptly after she realised that he was waiting for her. He continued once he saw it.

"There is only one other person alive who knows the truth."

"What is it then?"

Hank took a deep breath, waiting for something Alex couldn't see before he spoke again. "I am not Hank Henshaw. He died."

Not-Hank looked her dead in the eye. He seemed to muster all of his remaining courage, his voice just slightly cracking on its next sentence.

"He died the same night as your father."

Alex felt her whole body go numb. She didn't exactly know what she'd expected from him, but it wasn't that.

Not-Hank started monologuing, telling her the true story of how her father died, but she couldn't listen. She had barely even comprehended what he had just told her, let alone the incredibly valuable and personal story he was telling her.

But even so, she still understood the gist of the thing. How her father and the real Hank Henshaw travelled to Peru to track down an innocent alien, Henshaw's squadron set to terminate it. It didn't add up.

"My father would never have been part of a mission like that."

"You're right," Not-Hank said, nodding his head in her direction. "He was a good man. He realised that the alien wasn't a threat. He was a refugee. Like your sister. The sole survivor of a lost world."

Something suddenly clicked in Alex's mind and things started to make sense all at once.

"Henshaw became obsessed. He'd finally trapped the alien he'd been hunting for so long. So Jeremiah," he paused, taking a deep breath. "Jeremiah made the ultimate sacrifice."

Not-Hank looked straight at Alex and he shifted on the bench he sat on so that he was facing toward her.

"Your father died a hero, Alex."

Alex managed to clear her oddly dry throat and whispered into the dead silence that followed. "That alien, was that you?"

He didn't say anything, only nodded, his eyes shining with decade-old gratitude.

"I am a shapeshifter. When Hank Henshaw died, I assumed his identity to reform the DEO, but I also made your father a promise that night."

Alex swallowed as she watched Not-Hank get up from the bench, knowing what he was about to say.

"I made a promise that I would protect his daughters as though they were my own. I recruited you so that you could learn how to defend yourself and so that I could keep an eye on you and Kara."

"And Frankie?"

He shook his head and Alex could tell that he was trying hard not to cry. "Don't think I've forgotten about her. She was just as important Jeremiah as you and Kara were."

As ominous as that sounded, Alex found that she couldn't help but trust this new, honest version of Not-Hank. She only hoped that the promise didn't involve Frankie becoming some sort of agent as well, only because she didn't think she could stand worrying about another person's safety every single day.

"So if you're not Hank Henshaw, then who are you?"

Not-Hank turned away from her and she could see his body transforming right in front of her, waves of red flowing over his skin. When he faced her again, he was a completely different creature, no longer the human she had known him as, but the tall, green-skinned alien that had saved her before.

"My name is J'onn J'onzz, and I am the last son of Mars."

* * *

The day after the mild 'city-falling-apart' problem, Winn found himself sitting in the furthest seat possible from Kara and James after he walked in on them in the office. He knew that they weren't together and that there was nothing stopping them from getting together (except maybe Lucy, but he knew James did _not_ feel the same way about her anymore.) It still felt weird and he didn't even know why. It wasn't like he was interested in Kara all that much, his attraction toward her had never gone past a high school level crush.

Whatever it was still made his stomach writhe when he thought about it, still made his mind grow embarrassed every time she looked at James the way she had in the office. The way she was right now.

He looked up from his plate to catch Frankie staring at him, but she didn't turn away. Instead, she raised one eyebrow in a clear _are you feeling ok_ kind of gesture that made him think that she had been trying to get his attention. He did his best to shrug his shoulders as nonchalantly as possible, but almost knocked over his glass of water, so he just settled for nodding.

Frankie held his gaze for a moment longer as though she wanted to tell him that she didn't quite believe him, but then she turned around, noticing James' eyes on her as well.

That was another thing Winn had noticed. James had always acted, _odd,_ around Frankie. Different from how he acted towards Kara and reminiscent of the way Kara acted around him. For Winn, James had never been a very hard code to crack, but for whatever reason, the differences in his character around the Danvers sisters was probably the most confusing part about him.

Unless...

"I'm going to the bathroom," Frankie announced, standing up and eyeing Kara meaningfully. Kara took the hint and jumped up after her, sending one last longing look to James, before she followed Frankie around a corner.

Which left only him and James.

"So, how have you been?" James asked, very awkwardly.

"Yeah, alright," Winn replied, not exactly meeting his eyes. "You?"

"Yeah, I mean a lot's been going on, you know." James pulled his napkin from the table, and dropped it in his lap, fiddling with it uncomfortably. "Can I tell you something?"

Winn, caught off guard, struggled to find words to fit, briefly forgetting how his tongue worked. "Yeah, of course." Then he glanced around to make sure they were alone, which sure enough hadn't changed in the two minutes Kara and Frankie had been gone. "One to one, what's up?"

"Right," James said, a little confused. "Look, I know this isn't really the right time for this, but you're kind of my only friend here and I can't exactly tell Kara..."

"Wait, are you coming out to me? Why does this keep happening-"

"No, I'm not... But glad to know I'd be supported if I did,"

"Huh? What do you, wait. No, no no no. That is not what I meant, hang on,"

"Nah, I'm just messing. But it has to do with Frankie."

Winn frowned, somehow, that would have been the most obvious thing he could've said, but it somehow still hit him in the gut.

"What about her?"

James paused before he went on. "I just really like her, man." He stopped playing with the napkin and his eyes grew worryingly hazy. "And like, I know it's weird and all, cause she's Kara's sister, but I can't help it, you know?"

 _Fuck._

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Maybe expect a more Frankie-centric chapter next? I dunno, I just feel like channelling my first couple chapters.**

 **Speaking of the first couple chapters, I'm gonna go back soon and completely rewrite them because they're really ultra-bad. So if you liked them the best, I'm sorry, I just think they're kind of an eyesore for anyone new to my story.**

 **K** bye


	19. Extra Brownie Points

"No Alex. You can't turn the oven to six hundred. That's not going to make the brownies bake in five minutes."

Kara snatched Alex's tray from her hands on her way to the fridge, not trusting her to keep a safe distance from the hot things.

"But Kara, that's how that works. The hotter the temperature, the faster it cooks."

"If by _cooks_ you mean burns to a crisp and catches on fire, then yeah. You'd be right," Frankie explained, dicing a handful of almonds before dropping them into her own batter.

"You know, sometimes I wonder how Alex ever eats at home," Winn said, sliding his glass from the sink end of the counter to the other and plopping down at the seat in front of Frankie.

"Trust me Winn, you haven't seen the half of it." Kara deposited Alex's tray back in front of her, pointing a finger threateningly, and returned to her own station with the milk.

Once a year, Frankie, Kara and Alex all went head to head in what Kara had playfully dubbed, _'The Danvers Family Masterchef'_. It was probably the single event in her entire calendar that Frankie looked forward to more than Christmas.

She'd asked politely if this year the competition be held in her apartment rather than Kara's, but Kara had refused. Something about _you'll know the terrain better if we do it there,_ and, _I get that you're trying to make Winn think you're cool, but you'll destroy us anyway, at least do it with some decency._

Despite that, this year felt different. It could've been the fact that it was the first time doing it with the knowledge that the city could fall apart again at any moment, at least for everyone except Alex considering that she'd been with that mentality for years in secret. It might have also been that they still had the thought of Jeremiah and Hank hanging over their heads.

But this year, the day felt more necessary than ever. It served as a much-needed break from all the alien-fighting mayhem and the repetitive mundane-ness of their normal, human lives. Plus, Kara's powers still hadn't come back - wouldn't come back until she got some kind of adrenaline rush if Winn was correct - and she needed a way to not think about it.

"I still don't see why we can't just put weed in them," Alex muttered, turning the oven to a more appropriate three hundred and fifty degrees and sliding her tray in straight away.

"Because that's against the rules of _Danvers Masterchef_. Not to mention it's against the law and I don't think Winn would really appreciate it."

Kara only had three rules for the day:

1\. Alex was only allowed near knives and stoves under the correct supervision.

2\. There was to be no alcohol (or drugs) in use of any dish. This rule was pardoned if the substance was evaporated during the cooking process.

3\. There were to be no dishes that contained any form of crab or crab substitute.

The last one was only there because Frankie was wildly allergic to crab. No one actually had enough money to use real crab in their _Danvers Masterchef_ pieces, but it had been added out of solidarity and acknowledgment of the issue.

Since Kara and Frankie were objectively better chefs than Alex and they knew that ovens should be preheated to the proper temperature before use, they were left waiting for the single oven they had at hand to heat up while Alex started cleaning up her considerable mess.

"This is probably more interesting than watching actual Masterchef."

Kara had appointed Winn as designated judge and taster, which he was quite happy to be. He'd heard legends of Frankie's cooking from Kara all too often and had claimed that he finally needed to see what all the hype was about.

He leaned over the counter, staring into Frankie's tray of batter, watching as she marbled melted caramel through the top layer and she had to resist the urge to laugh. Every time she looked up at him, he was gazing at whatever she was doing with such wonder that it was like he'd never seen anything like it before.

"I'm guessing you don't bake much," she asked him, dropping a last smattering of chocolate chips on the top.

"No, I'm like Alex. I'm not very good at it. It's usually easier to just order in."

"Yeah, but it's a lot more expensive," Kara said from across the kitchen.

"That's because you have to eat ten times as much as I do," Winn laughed, pointing accusingly at Kara. He turned back to Frankie. "How are you so good at this anyway?"

"All she's done is make batter, it's not that impressive."

"Ah yes, but I've heard great legends of the _Danvers Masterchef._ Something about Frankie winning every single year since it's inception."

"All but one," Kara corrected. "I won two years ago."

"Yeah, because I was too sick to get out of my bed and I didn't feel like making food that was going to infect you all."

The oven beeped, letting them know that it had finally preheated. Alex threw on an oven mitt and grabbed her tray out of the way, letting Kara slide her own in. Frankie had to resist the urge to comment on the incredibly raw brownies that Alex had just produced, but she couldn't stop herself looking at them worriedly.

"What? I like them gooey." Alex dropped her pan haphazardly, barely baked batter flying everywhere.

"Have you heard of Salmonella?"

"Jokes on you, I didn't put any egg in them."

"Dear Lord," Frankie muttered under her breath.

"But really, you look like you actually know what you're doing," Winn said, watching as Frankie wiped down the bench around her.

"Well, my school didn't have a cafeteria once you surpassed the age of fourteen. We had a food budget so you could order in or go out if you wanted, but they encouraged us to cook when we got the chance."

"Oh right, cause you went to a boarding school, yeah?"

Frankie looked at him confusedly over the top of the bowl she'd started to wash, but didn't ask.

"Yeah, that's the excuse she gives everyone."

"Alex, stop trying to cut the fucking brownies. They're literally liquid!"

Alex determinedly ignored Frankie and slid the knife through her brownies, swearing colourfully when she realised that they were completely burnt on the bottom. Frankie, not surprised, didn't say anything.

After Frankie and Kara's brownies had both cooked properly and had the chance to cool down, Kara pulled out the special _Danvers Masterchef_ plates that were decorated with reindeer because why not, and they spent their time making everything look as fancy as possible.

Alex had quickly realised that raw batter wouldn't stay on a flat plate, so she settled for a bowl instead, making Winn laugh.

In the end, Winn had two plates and a bowl lined up in front of him and he eyed each of them carefully.

"These look pretty good, I have to say."

Frankie dropped into the chair next to him, watching as he accepted the spoon Kara offered him and took the first bite of Alex's 'brownies.' Alex glared at him, almost daring him to say anything immoral.

He paused for a moment, his face frustratingly blank, before he nodded.

"You know, you guys were shitting on these, but apart from the texture, they really aren't half bad."

Alex's face shifted to a pure smugness matched only by someone who had just won a bet over who's bouncy castle was bouncier. She didn't say anything, but turned and made her way to Kara's bathroom, her mere gait gaining an extra inch of confidence.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Winn shot up and sprinted to the sink, spitting out whatever batter he had left in his mouth. Frankie watched in amusement as he visibly shuddered.

"Holy hell, that was the worst thing I have ever done in my entire life."

"Are they really that bad," Kara asked, leaning on the counter with her elbows and eyeing the bowl with mild distaste.

"Yes, they really are. I did't want to say anything because Alex has always given me the impression that she could murder me so quietly that no one would notice I was gone if she wanted to," he whispered, waving his arms in a grotesque imitation of getting skinned by a goat, or at least that was what it looked like to Frankie.

Alex strolled lightly back into the room, still looking immensely proud of herself. Winn winked at Frankie from across the counter.

"Winn, keep tasting. I wanna see what you think of mine!" Kara sat down next to Frankie and eagerly pushed a plate towards Winn.

"Uh, no. That's my plate. Stop trying to take credit for my work, you smarmy sasquatch!"

Dejected, Kara pulled Frankie's plate back and shoved her own at Winn.

"Hm," he said, examining the brownies with careful consideration. "Presentation is good, seven out of ten,"

"I didn't know we were rating presentation, do mine."

"Alex, yours were a pile of slop in a bowl. Delicious mind you," another wink, "but I couldn't give them a one if I tried."

He took a bite of Kara's brownie, and his eyes didn't look dead, which clearly meant that they were better than Alex's. Kara was already beaming.

"Gooey, I like that. Nice and chocolatey. Overall, a good after-school snack kind of thing. You get an eight and five sevenths out of ten."

"Why so low, you said it was good?"

"Because I'm holding out hope for these goddamn delicacies over here," Winn whispered dramatically, pointing at Frankie's plate.

"Just eat them before you start foaming at the mouth."

Winn reached for the plate and cradled the top-most brownie in his fingers as though it cost a million dollars.

"Presentation, perfect. Ten out of ten."

"Here we go..." Alex muttered, rolling her eyes from Frankie's other side.

Winn took the first bite, his eyes fluttering closed in satisfaction.

"This, my friend, is the most beautiful thing I have ever tasted."

"And there we go. Frankie wins for the fourth year, not in a row. Because I won once."

"Why am I not surprised."

Winn seemingly could not contain his joy at the brownie, ignoring the comments, and Frankie had to avert her eyes.

"I'm not entirely sure if this is the right time to mention this," she said, catching both Alex and Kara's attention. "But, Brad and I started dating."

Everyone stopped. The room physically stopped.

Frankie looked around in surprise, noting quickly the varying expressions of surprise that had appeared on everyone's faces. Winn's complete and utter shock, Alex's confused scepticism, and Kara's overwhelming glee.

"Ok, don't all start talking at once."

"This is amazing," Kara murmured, her face alight like a Christmas tree. "I actually can't believe it."

Winn didn't say anything, but focused back on his brownie, avoiding Frankie's eyes. Alex tentatively raised her hand.

"I thought you were already dating,"

"Well, kind of. We were going out on dates, but like, it's official now. He's my boyfriend."

"It's a bit soon, don't you think? You've only known each other for like, what, a few weeks?"

"Shush, Alex. She's got a boyfriend!" Kara squealed, throwing her arms around Frankie and squeezing tight in a grip that promised to never let go.

"I've got a boyfriend," Frankie whispered in slight disbelief.

But as she watched Winn's oddly confused and disheartened expression, she couldn't help but feel less triumphant than she'd imagined.

* * *

The rooftop setting somehow looked just as romantic as it had at night.

Brad hadn't booked the entire place out again, but Frankie couldn't see a point, _'You don't need fancy ass gestures, you're my boyfriend.'_ But even so, the Thai place was somehow the most romantic thing in the world.

"Are you ever going to take me someplace different?"

"Not now that I know you like PJ's so much," Brad said, opening his menu with pretend interest, even though they both knew he knew exactly what he was going to order.

"Playing it safe, I see."

He laughed.

"I'm a businessman, it's what I do."

When their food arrived later on, it sat barely touched as Frankie herself entranced by Brad's stories, only half of which were physically possible.

Tales of trips to India and South America that were so fantastical and left nothing to be desired, but stood out for their elements of royalty and adventure in Frankie's mind and made it impossible or her to believe them.

"Fascinating, really spectacular, but tell me. How were you in Argentina saving local wildlife on January fifth, but in Spain meeting with the royal family on the sixth?"

"You really are a lawyer, huh?"

Frankie winked and finally turned to her cold pad Thai.

"Did I tell you about the time I went to Antarctica?"

"Oh my God."

* * *

Frankie opened her apartment door later that night to Alex and Kara both sitting on her couch watching Westwing _._

"Both of you. Get out."

Kara turned around quickly, beaming when she noticed Brad.

"Brad, hi. I don't think we've properly met. I'm Kara." She stuck out her hand, jumping up from her seat and running towards them.

"Hi-"

"I'm being serious."

"Hang on, won't be a minute. This episode's almost finished."

"Alex!"

Not turning around, Alex threw her feet up onto the ottoman, relaxing back into the cushions.

"I'm one of Frankie's older sisters," Kara said from somewhere next to Frankie.

"Kara, you're missing the end," Alex was yelling from the couch.

"I'm sorry, I'm just trying to be polite. You should try it sometime."

And suddenly, it was like she was thirteen and back home for the holidays. For no reason other than pure sibling love, Alex and Kara had that special way of getting under her skin, even though Frankie was ninety percent sure that Kara didn't even know she was doing it half the time.

Alex especially knew exactly how to push her buttons and what set her off, and it was only fair since Frankie knew what to say to Alex to make her crack in return, but it still made her mad. Especially since right at that second was not the moment to be exercising that skill.

Kara must have caught something on Frankie's face because she stopped small talking with Brad and turned to yell at Alex.

"Ok, you've had your fun. We have to go now."

Alex, very slowly and deliberately, rose from her seat and turned, stalking over to the rest of them with her eyes ablaze.

"Party pooper," she muttered before Kara dragged her out the door, slamming it behind her.

Finally in a quiet apartment, Frankie sighed in relief, silently thanking God that Kara was nice enough to actually be a good person. She watched as Brad stood next to her, eyes wide in amazement.

"You ok there, buddy?"

"Yeah, I just..." He trailed off, his voice lost to the obvious onslaught of _Danvers Overload._

"I know they're a lot to handle. I'm kind of sorry you had to see that," she said, moving into the kitchen and grabbing two bottles of water and the leftover brownies from the fridge.

"No, I think it's sweet. They're being protective, or at least Kara is, I guess. It's good."

Frankie grinned with her back still turned. She could hear him move to the kitchen and she looked back, watching him drop his coat over a chair. He ran a hand through his hair and he turned, noticing her staring at him.

"The ice is broken, you don't have to play around anymore."

"What do you mean?" She asked, slinking over to him. He laughed and faced her completely.

"I'm just saying, we're together now. You don't have to be nervous."

"You saying that isn't going to stop me from being nervous," she whispered, grabbing his hands.

He pulled her towards him gently as her face flushed.

"I'm still nervous."

"Don't be."

His eyes fluttered between her lips and the floor, and Frankie pushed their bodies together, letting him wrap her in his arms and hold her. She let his mouth work against hers, and for once she let go, because this feeling, the one of elation higher than the Empire State building, the one that flooded her bones and made her sink into the ground lower than the deepest parts of the ocean?

It was something she'd been missing for almost as long as she'd been alive.

They broke apart, both slightly out of breath, and Frankie watched as he caught her eye, the spark of a raging bonfire burning throughout.

"Good?"

"Honestly, just as good as the first time."

"Well," he whispered. "I'm glad to know I haven't gotten any worse in the twenty-four hours since we last kissed."

Frankie laughed, leaning up to kiss him again, trying not to sigh when she felt herself melt into him for the second time.

In between breaths, she muttered, "You know, if I'm being honest, this is actually better than the first time."

"Why's that?"

"Because there aren't people in mortal peril all around us at this moment."

He laughed and leaned in again, threading his hands into her hair and looping his fingers in the knotted strands, pulling them apart gently, ever so carefully as her arms snaked around his neck. Every shift in position sent fire through her veins and she swore that this was a thousand times better than she'd done before.

Her mouth drove against his, all of the passion that she'd forgotten pouring out of her in one heated and excited moment. One moment, because she couldn't get enough of the way he felt on her.

They separated after a minute and Frankie grinned.

Her heart was racing and she couldn't stop replaying the feeling of his hands on her body, or the way his lips felt on hers only seconds before...

"Shit, sorry."

Looking up in surprise, Frankie saw Brad standing incredibly guiltily next to the table, his bottle of water completely all over the floor.

"No, you're fine, let me get that."

She reached for the paper towels, wiping it up as quickly as she could.

"Kind of a buzzkill if you ask me."

"Honestly, don't worry."

Once everything was dry, she stepped up to the bin. Dramatically, she stomped down on the pedal and the lid shot up.

"Kobe," she yelled, dropping the wad of wet paper towels and missing spectacularly from a fabulous height of about four inches.

"That was pathetic."

"I promise I'm good," Frankie groaned, reaching down to pick the paper towel up. As she closed her fingers around it, however, her eye was caught by a note lying next to the paper. She picked it up and opened it, frowning at what said.

 _Hank isn't who he says he is._

* * *

Two days after _Danvers Masterchef_ , Kara still didn't have her powers back.

Everyone around her seemed to have forgotten about the disasters of their current state, the fact that the city was under a lot of stress, and she still couldn't do anything to fix it.

Alex's initial estimate of one and a half to two days had been way off. It had been now almost a week. And counting.

To put it lightly, Kara was going a little stir-crazy.

Her desk at CatCo had never felt so, for lack of a better term, alienating. Normally, she had Winn to count on, but after he'd walked in on her hugging James, he'd been acting strangely. They'd put up a fair show at the bake-off, mainly for Frankie, but now that she wasn't anywhere in sight, things were back to the way they had been.

She hated that no one seemed to care about the welfare of National City, hated that she couldn't fly out and help some people. The threat of Jemm may have gone off the radar, but there were still copy-cat disasters wreaking havoc all of the city, and she hated that people were getting more and more scared with Supergirl's prolonged disappearance.

Most of her jobs for the day were done, but she stayed at her desk just in case. If anyone asked, she would say it was for Ms Grant's constant need for smoothies, but really, she was waiting for an opportunity to talk to James.

She hadn't really gotten the chance to speak with him in a few days and she wanted to see if he-

She stopped.

Her internal rambling had been cut off by a rumble from outside. The entire floor shook, and everyone around stopped what they were doing, looking around panicked.

Winn appeared from nowhere by her right shoulder, carefully avoiding her still bandaged elbow.

"What was that?" He asked, frantically putting the papers he was carrying down on his desk.

There was an enormous crash from near the elevator, and James came running out of his office, scanning the floor for injuries.

"I don't know, it has to have been some kind of an explosion."

Winn spared a glance at the ceiling, his face darkening. Seeming to get a sudden idea, he picked up Kara's phone and hurriedly dialled a number that Kara recognised as belonging to upstairs.

"Please no one be up there, please no one be up there," he muttered under his breath. James seemed to have thought the same thing and he ran to the entrance of the stairwell.

Kara's body was numb, both with shock and worry. There weren't many people on their floor, it was late in the afternoon, but the fear amongst everyone was palpable. Winn's fingers closed tighter around the phone as the other end clicked into action.

"Of course there's someone up there," he whispered, looking at her with a grimace before he turned away and addressed the man on upstairs. "We're just a few floors below you, help is on the way."

He paused, turning back to Kara. "I just lied to a whole bunch of people, is that ok?"

James ran back into view, shaking his head. "The entire stairwell is blocked going up."

Kara could hear the man's frantic voice through the phone. _"We're above you, we can't get down the stairs-"_

Kara was suddenly struck with an idea. The elevator might have been out of the question, but it didn't mean they couldn't use the space.

"The elevator shaft," she whispered.

Winn and James followed her as she sprinted to the metal doors. James wrestled them open as Winn called the floor from his mobile, informing them of the new plan. He took one look down the shaft, long and looming, and backed up at least three feet, making it clear that he wasn't keen on being more than a liaison.

"Uh, problem. They can't get their doors open."

"I'll climb up then."

Kara, shocked and angry, stepped forward, blocking James from the doors.

"James, no. We are twenty-three floors up and-"

"I didn't say I was happy about it,"

Stupid. He was being an idiot.

"I'll be back, promise."

But before Kara could move to stop him further, he was shrugging off his shirt, leaving him in nothing but a navy undershirt, and pushing gently but firmly past her.

He swung round to the metal footholds that stuck out of the shaft wall and positioned himself on them. He pulled himself up each one, moving swiftly, but carefully.

Kara could hear the people on the floors above banging on their doors and yelling and she could do nothing but stand there and watch.

Her heart pounded a steady rhythm in her chest as she watched James get dangerously higher with every step. After he was about a quarter of the way between the twenty-third and twenty-fourth floors, there was another explosion.

Again, the shaft shook and James lost his footing. He was now dangling one-handed from a single metal railing.

Winn gasped from next to her, his face growing paler with every passing second. For Kara, every second felt like a million as she watched James hang haphazardly in midair, as she watched his fingers slip.

He fell in relative slow motion, barely even having the time to scream for help, and Kara's entire body sizzled into motion from its dazed state.

Every nerve felt as though it was receiving an electric shock, and she knew exactly what it meant. Her arm no longer hurt, her brain no longer fizzled, and her body was no longer powerless.

"Kryptonian adrenaline," Winn whispered as Kara threw off the sling around her elbow, shooting up through the shaft to rescue the people above.

* * *

Kara getting her powers back wasn't all shits and giggles, as Frankie soon learned.

Thanks to Winn's more than slightly-illegal intel, Alex knew why Kara had suddenly been able to save James and everyone else, but she still ran test after test to try and finds flaws in Kara's new found freedom.

It was exhausting just watching.

After at least two hours, Frankie had lost count after a while, Alex came up empty-handed and finally declared Kara free to leave.

Not wasting any time, Kara bounced to the door, announcing pizza at her's for anyone who was interested in coming.

Alex cited a lame excuse, claiming that she'd be there soon, looking strangely disheartened. Kara simply shrugged, completely unfazed, and turned, heading out the door.

Frankie watched Kara go, laughing at the new spring in her step. She turned to Alex, suddenly remembering what she'd brought with her to the DEO.

"Hey, so uh, I found something pretty interesting in my apartment the other night."

Alex looked up from her work, narrowing her eyes.

"Yeah, what's that?"

Frankie reached into her bag and pulled out the note, still creased from the tight ball she'd found it in. She held it out to Alex, watching for any signs of... things that shouldn't be there.

Alex unwrapped the wad of paper, and Frankie watched her face morph from slight confusion to complete panic.

Her face pale, Alex gestured to the note, stuttering, "Where... how did you get this?"

"It was lying next to my bin. I knew it wasn't mine because I actually use the recycling bin."

"So you haven't read it?"

Frankie winced, her heart sinking. She had read it, _of course she had_ , but the last thing she wanted was for Alex to be upset.

"Look, you don't have to tell me what it was about. I'm not asking you to give me all of his secrets, but I thought it was worth being honest and telling you that I know what the note says and only what the note says."

Alex avoided her eyes and looked down at the paper.

"It's been killing me. But it's his secret, and you're right. I can't tell you what it is, and I'm really glad that you're going to respect that."

"Of course."

Alex looked up, and Frankie was surprised to see her eyes full of tears. Frankie knew that Alex was good at keeping secrets, too good if it came down to it, but it didn't always mean that she was ok with doing it. She could tell that it would tear her apart soon enough, and so Frankie could only hope that she wouldn't have to keep it for too much longer.

"So, why the note? Not the best way to keep things private."

"I couldn't stand not being able to tell anyone. It was something one of my friends at Stanford taught me. You write it down, like you're telling someone, then burn it so no one ever knows. I didn't think you would see it."

Frankie stopped herself from muttering about a job well done and instead watched Alex regain her steady composure.

"Do me a favour though. Kara knows absolutely _nothing_ , and we need to keep it that way."

"Got it."

"Pinky promise?"

Frankie grinned.

"Pinky promise."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I promise that this is going to end with Frankie and Winn getting together. Please just trust me. There's no spoiler alert there, it's literally in the title.**

Also **I've realised that at the rate this story is going, I'm going to have to cut out most of the back half of the season. I'm gonna keep the important things of course, but I have to focus on the more important stuff in Frankie's arc. So I'm really sorry if those bits were your favourites, but...**

 **K** bye **.**


	20. Important Note

Hey you, yes you. The one reading my story.

Thank you. Thank you very much for taking time out of your day to go on this poorly planned rollercoaster with me, I can't express how much gratitude I feel for each and every comment and each and every vote. It truly means the world to me!

But the time has come. I think we should address the 'abusive relationship' tag.

I really tried to leave this message as long as I could before it became necessary, but I believe we have reached that point.

In the next several chapters, (I can't say exactly how many at this point, hopefully not too many), there will be a mild depiction of an abusive relationship. If you aren't comfortable reading this sort of thing, please, by all means, keep reading the rest of this note and it will hopefully spell out any concerns that you may have.

I am going to do my best to include as many ways as I can of trying to accommodate, but please, if you feel more comfortable, just skip the chapters as outlined below.

 **Take a look:**

 **-any chapter following that includes mention or depiction of the relationship will be marked with a '*' in the title**

 **-the page breaks (~~~~~~) before and following the specific scenes will also be marked just in case you only want to skip those specific scenes**

 **-if you do decide to go ahead and skip the whole chapter (I promise, no hard feelings, whatever makes you comfortable) and you would still like an edited run-down of what happened in the chapter without those scenes, please feel free to pm me and I'll make sure I get back to you asap**

Take care kiddos and remember, if you have any questions or problems, don't hesitate to let me know. I'm on my phone relatively unhealthily and I'll try my best to get back to you as quickly as I can.

For those of you oh so patiently waiting for the next update, (thank you again for sticking around, it's been a very busy set of weeks) it should be up soon :)

Sincerely,

AnotherAverageAuthor.


	21. Truth

Time flew past faster now that things were back to normal. Kara's powers were back and positively thriving, but Frankie could tell that with the lack of city-wide emergencies, she'd been getting restless.

Frankie, to a certain extent, felt the same. She didn't have powers that had disappeared for a week and a half only to have then come back and be able to do absolutely nothing with them, but still.

She wasn't used to her life being so, _normal,_ even though it was exactly the same as when she'd moved in. She'd spent years going to college and then work, and hanging out with Kara and Alex all the time and been fine. Now, she had arguably more of a social life with more than three friends (a solid four was the current count), yet she felt worse than before.

She'd become used to the hustle and bustle of having Supergirl as a sister and the mild twenty-four-hour anxiety that came with it, but things had quietened down considerably in the recent weeks. It was almost like all of the evil aliens and bad guys had taken a break, and the lack of life-threatening excitement had cut her deeper than she'd ever thought it could have.

"Hey babe, you're gonna miss the end of the movie."

Frankie looked up from the chopping board to her boyfriend.

"Sorry, I just haven't been concentrating."

Brad shook his head and beckoned her over, patting the spot next to him on his couch.

"I don't mind, but this stupid robot does. His big moment is about to happen and you're not watching."

Sighing dejectedly, Frankie shuffled to the couch and plonked down, tucking her legs closely underneath her.

"I just don't see why him murdering all the people is a good thing."

"Because they're evil, keep up."

Brad's focus turned back to the tv, but Frankie still found it difficult to do the same. This kind of moment should have been perfect, watching stupid movies with her boyfriend on a Thursday night and absolutely nothing floating over her head.

His apartment was huge and comfortable and inexplicably covered with blankets and pillows, and the initial shock of its pure scale had worn off.

Even so, she was just waiting for a call from somebody to tell her that things were getting spicy again.

At that exact second, as though her prayers had been answered from above, there was a buzz from the coffee table.

She answered the call quickly, without even bothering to check who it was, and when the line finally connected, she was greeted by a harsh crackling from the other end. Pulling the phone back from her ear before she went permanently deaf, she registered Winn's name on the screen.

Getting up and moving back into the kitchen, she replaced the phone next to the side of her face, missing the confused stare that Brad shot her from over his shoulder and grimaced as the jarring whine subsided.

"Winn, what the fuck?"

 _"Did it work?"_

"I've got no clue what you're talking about, but from what just happened, I'm gonna go with a no."

She could imagine Winn's frown through the phone, but the voice that came through sounded far cheerier than she had expected it to be.

 _"Damn. Well, worth a shot."_

Up to this point, Frankie still had no clue what Winn was saying, and by the sounds of the whirring and sputtering in the background, she wasn't entirely sure that she needed clarification.

"Should I ask?"

 _"It's probably best if I don't have to explain it. I should let you get back to what you were doing. Unless you're not busy? We could make an afternoon out of it."_

Frankie looked back to Brad, who had been turning around every few seconds, watching her out of the corner of his eye. Something about the way that his gaze pierced into her made her, for the first time in his presence, slightly uncomfortable.

She got a sudden urge to end the conversation as quickly as possible.

"I actually can't right now, but I would love to hear about it. Maybe tomorrow?"

She could hear Winn sigh heavily and his voice dropped considerably when he spoke again.

 _"No, that's fine. Tomorrow it is then. I'll see you soon."_

Frankie couldn't help the guilty twisting of her stomach as she bade him goodbye and hung up the phone. She sat back on the couch and sunk heavily into the cushions, absentmindedly toying with the ends of her hair.

She and Brad sat in an uncomfortable silence, one where she could tell that he was itching to talk but didn't quite know what to say. After a minute or so, he cleared his throat, and his voice came out gruff and scratchy.

"Who's Winn?" He coughed again, his vocal cords finally deciding to pull their weight.

"One of Kara's friends," Frankie answered carefully. She wouldn't have cared normally, but she could detect the slightest hints of jealousy in his tone.

"Oh, ok," he said simply, turning back to the tv. "Are you two close?"

Frankie didn't know what to say. Not even in terms of how she should present it to Brad. Were she and Winn close? She'd never thought about it. They'd certainly become better and better friends fairly quickly.

They certainly weren't _best_ friends, but Frankie liked to think that they might get there eventually.

But the look on Brad's face swayed her response further than she wanted it to.

"Not really."

The small smile that grew on his face when he turned back to the tv threw the knots in her stomach into a vine-laden pit.

* * *

"No, Ms Grant. I made sure everything was sorted out for this evening."

 _"Really, Keira? Because you have been known to forget important dates in the past, I would hope that this isn't one of those times."_

Kara grimaced through the phone. While Ms Grant was technically right, she definitely hadn't forgotten the plans for that night. She couldn't have possibly forgotten, the party was the hottest topic of discussion in the newsroom.

"I promise that everything's organised."

 _"Good. I'll be in around ten to give you an optimal chance to cram-finish it because I know that you're lying."_

She really had planned just about everything, but if Ms Grant wanted to be in at ten, she could be in at ten. Really, if Ms Grant wanted to jump from a plane without a parachute and have Dwayne Johnson run around and catch her in a cardboard box, she could make it happen. She was scary like that.

From the other end of the line, her boss decidedly hung up the phone. Sighing, Kara redoubled her grip on her bag as the elevator doors slid open.

It had taken quite a bit to of time to get Ms Grant off her trail, especially since she'd been spending increasingly less and less time at work the more serious her Supergirl-ing got. Her absence hadn't gone unnoticed, but through careful discussion and convincing, she'd _just_ managed to scrape through with her job intact, even if it was only because Ms Grant 'couldn't be bothered to find another assistant'.

Arriving at her desk, Kara dropped her bag and her coffee. She looked around for Winn, wanting to talk to him about the fact that they were still sort of ignoring each other, but his desk was empty. Scanning the office, she couldn't see him anywhere else, either.

They'd become best friends over their years at CatCo and she'd missed having someone to joke around with over the last few weeks. He was so important to her, but this rift had pushed them further and further apart and it felt like the longer they left it, the worse it got. And it was all over the most stupid thing.

Kara pushed it to the side for the moment. He clearly wasn't ready to talk about it anyway.

In the time it took to get from Noonan's to the eighth floor, she'd effectively emptied her coffee cup's contents and if she was being technical, there was a bin a mere five steps from her desk, but there was also one directly across from the art division. If she was being completely honest, she really just wanted an excuse to talk to James.

He'd been acting strangely in the past week or two. He was zoning out and spending time on his phone all too often, but the strangest thing wasn't so apparent on the surface. Kara had only noticed it after the day that the two of them plus Frankie and Brad had spent in the city, trying to help the people injured in the disasters, but he'd started asking questions, almost like an incessant tick.

Questions usually weren't much of a big deal in Kara's book, Alex had always said that she was guilty of asking a few too many throughout their childhood, but these were different. These weren't the innocent wonderings of a teenager new in a foreign world.

They seemed odd, targeted. Like he had a secret intention that Kara couldn't quite put her finger on. They all seemed to tie back, somehow, to Frankie. They weren't creepy at all, just too prevalent for Kara to quite look over comfortably.

Had she known any better, she would have assumed that he liked her, but that couldn't be right. She knew what it looked like when people liked each other. It's why she was so good at hiding it.

Right outside James' office, Kara ran into a solid force, almost knocking it over. Looking up quickly, she grabbed his arm, trying not to drop the cup she was still carrying.

Looking up, she caught Winn's eyes making hasty contact before he was off down the corridor. Not planning on passing up the opportunity to talk to him, she whipped around and called out his name.

"Winn! Wait up!"

He paused but didn't turn around.

"Winn, I want to talk to you."

Taking the initiative that Winn obviously was trying to ignore, she moved back until she was standing in front of him.

"You've been avoiding me."

He shook his head, refusing to meet her eyes.

"That's not true."

"It is. You know it is." Kara tilted her head slightly, trying to get him to look at her. She had known that he was upset that she'd hugged James, but now she was starting to think that there was something more.

"What is going on with you? I get that I hugged James, but it was nothing. We hug all the time! That doesn't mean anything."

"I know!" He said, raising his voice slightly, but not enough to get the attention of those around them.

"Look, Kara, I've got to go. I'm sorry."

Winn stepped past Kara and hurried back down the corridor she had just come from and Kara could do nothing but watch him go. Was everyone around her going to act weirdly from now on? It felt as though some kind of deal had been signed with the overlords for a little bit of fun in exchange for her sanity.

She might not even be surprised if she got to her apartment that night to find Alex eating her cactus. It was just the kind of day she was having.

Remembering quickly about a call she needed to make to finalise one of the bands for the party, she left James alone and scurried quickly back to her desk, trying to shake the lingering confusion that hung around her head.

* * *

 _"October second. Pencil it into your diary."_

The date plunged a hole deep into Frankie's chest.

"Louise, you don't have to do this you aren't my assistant."

Louise looked over at Frankie from her desk, the phone hanging loosely from her hand.

 _"You've got a meeting with the carers at three. That's gonna be in meeting room seven."_

Frankie could see Louise from her desk, and the smirk that had been slapped on her face was enough for Frankie to get up and prowl over to the reception bench.

"Lou, did you make my entire schedule for this week?"

"I did."

Frankie sighed, grinning at her best friend. "Surely you're employed to do other things."

"This is honestly the most exciting part. Plus, I can add 'Personal Assistant' to my resume."

Jumping at a hand on her shoulder, Frankie turned around quickly to see Crawford hovering behind her, a little too close for comfort. His suit and moustache looked a little less impeccable than usual and since he was never seen in anything less than Saint Laurent and neatly trimmed facial hair, Frankie was worried.

"Danvers. Working hard?"

"I am sir, just getting the plans for some meetings later."

He narrowed his small eyes and Frankie tried not to laugh as his eyebrows wiggled enthusiastically.

"Good," he replied finally before marching off.

Frankie and Louise exchanged amused glances before Frankie went back to her own desk, getting her papers ready for the meeting later that day.

By the time that three o'clock rolled around, the carer of the kids she was working for had arrived and was sat by herself in meeting room seven.

She had looked slightly dishevelled and had come into the office looking absolutely exhausted. Whatever the reason, Frankie wasn't sure, but she gathered her notes and stood up, moving to the room to meet her.

The carer looked up when Frankie came into the room. From her body language alone, Frankie could tell that she didn't give two horse shits about what was happening, but all Frankie needed was to talk to the kids.

So she introduced herself.

"It's good to meet you, Ms Baker."

"Rosalie is fine. Look, how long is this going to take, I've got to be back at the house by five."

"I suspect it shouldn't take long, Ms Baker."

A new voice from the door made Frankie jump and she looked up to see a man in an NCPD jacket staring down at them. His waist was covered in a giant utility belt that held everything from weapons to beef jerky.

"Who are you?"

"Detective Raymond with the NCPD. I'm investigating the claims your clients made about Ms Baker."

Frankie eyed him scrupulously. His hands shoved into his belt, he looked uncomfortable, like he was itching to stand with someone else. She could tell that he wasn't used to working alone.

"You got a partner, Detective?"

"Normally, but she's out on another case."

He took a seat across from Rosalie, next to Frankie, and turned to address her.

"Ms Baker, I understand that this whole ordeal has been stressful so I've taken the liberty of arranging to have you meet with an attorney next week."

Annoyed by the sudden intrusion, Frankie sank back in her chair. She could feel Crawford's eyes on the back of her head, so she turned her head to look at Raymond, doing her best not to raise her voice.

"Detective, I'm sure you're aware that sorting out a legal team for Ms Baker's defence is not why we're here today."

"I understand, but it is in my best interests to make sure Ms Baker is comfortable."

"Guys," Rosalie said, raising her voice slightly to make sure she was heard over Raymond. "I don't really care about being comfortable. Do you want to talk to the kids or not?"

"Yes. I would," Frankie sighed, sitting up straight in her chair once more.

"Come over on Sunday." Rosalie reached a hand into her breast pocket and pulled out a business card. She shoved it across the table. "The address is on the back."

Detective Raymond watched her, slightly sceptically. "Ms Baker, you don't have to allow a meeting if you don't want to."

"I don't care. If she wants to talk to the kids, then she can talk to the kids."

Something about the way that Rosalie seemed like she couldn't care less about what happened, her apparent hurry to get the meeting over with, made Frankie just a tad more hopeful for the case.

But still, as she watched Detective Raymond stiffen in his chair and pull out a notepad to take notes, she knew that the road to get where she wanted to be was not going to be easy.

* * *

"Honestly, it was invented over twenty years ago, I just plan on capitalising on it."

Later that night, Frankie invited Winn over, needing him to know that she wasn't joking about wanting to hang out.

"Winn, I'm pretty sure whatever this gizmo is, it's not very mainstream."

He'd arrived happily, holding a small metal box with wires protruding from every angle. When she'd asked about it, he'd simply told her that she'd have to wait. For what, she didn't know.

"Hush, I'm just trying to make ends meet in this cruel world."

Frankie was now more than halfway through making a meal, and he still hadn't explained what the stupid thing did.

"Look, that thing nearly made me go deaf. If my ears have to be subjected to a high pitched ringing for the rest of my life, I want to know what made it happen."

"It transfers signals to a private sector, so that you basically can have service wherever the fuck you are," he said, tilting the box dramatically towards Frankie so that she could see it more clearly.

Frankie, only slightly confused, finished plating the mac and cheese she'd made just for the occasion and slid a plate to Winn. He pulled it closer towards him, gesturing for her to come back and on the chair next to his.

"So you're trying to privatise an industry that's already privatised?"

Winn nodded without hesitation, a little too excited to be stealing money from big companies. He pushed it to the side grabbed the cutlery Frankie offered him.

"I'm just saying, it's easier to make calls in the middle of the desert if you need to. I guess it just needs some tweaking." His brow furrowed and he turned to face her. "You're sure it didn't work?"

"Yes. Yes, I am."

Frankie enjoyed days like these. She'd gotten things done at work and progressed further than had been planned for that day, and was still able to come home and relax and cook food and talk about shit that didn't actually matter. Because if Winn was actually planning on making this box a real thing, she would buy it, but the chance of that actually happening was so slim that she didn't mind shooting it down.

"Have you talked to Kara recently?"

"Yeah, why?"

Winn paused, looking away. "Has she said anything weird to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"About James."

Frankie watched his face, looking for any odd signs, but all she could see was his gentle worry. Scanning her memory, she tried to find any instance of what he was describing, but came up empty.

"No, I don't think so."

Slightly confused, she watched his expression wash with relief and, without elaborating, he took a bite of the mac and cheese and smiled up at her.

"This is amazing."

"Thanks," Frankie said, ignoring her own bowl and staring at Winn. "Care to explain?"

He hesitated a moment and put his fork back down, too distracted to eat. Frankie could almost see the gears turning in his head, trying to figure out what to say because it was obvious that he couldn't tell her the truth.

She couldn't imagine what was causing this much strife for him, but the only way to find out was apparently to wait for him to sort himself out, which Frankie was perfectly ready to do.

Eventually, he came to some kind of conclusion.

"I walked in on her, hugging James a while back."

It had taken him so long to say Frankie was genuinely concerned.

"I know it doesn't sound that bad," he continued hurriedly, "but he likes... someone else. It just made me feel kind of uncomfortable."

"And so you're avoiding Kara because of that?"

Winn seemed to realise that it was slightly ridiculous because he smiled and laughed a little, shaking his head.

"I'm not exactly sure anymore. It's hard to explain."

Frankie watched him shrug his shoulders and she watched him go back to the mac and cheese with eager eyes, and for whatever reason, despite the slight unease that the conversation had left because it was always awkward discussing your sister's love life with her best friend, that moment felt perfect.

* * *

Kara had missed flying.

With the low crime throughout the city, each dip into the inky black ocean of sky felt like a new moment in a long conveyor belt of thinking time. And after things had settled down with her powers and Jemm, she really needed that time.

No second that she spent hovering around the city was wasted and Kara never planned on doing so.

If she could get out at nighttime, it was even better.

It was why that night felt so regular and normal, even after her definitely not-normal conversation with Winn and his insistence on avoiding the issue altogether. He was acting strange, out of character. For as long as she had known him, he'd always been the one to face his problems head on, so this odd scurrying out of the spotlight act had been getting tiring.

Kara curved a building a little sharper than she'd intended to and was thrown slightly off-balance. Before she could regain it however, a hard force collided with her and sent her spiralling off towards the ground below.

Before she could even register what was happening, her body met the pavement and the stone cracked and broke under her.

Shocked into submission, Kara desperately tried to regain her bearings as quickly as she could and shakily stood up, coming face to face with two men dressed completely in black.

"Who are you?" She chocked out, her mouth dry and dusty.

Without answering, they began to march forward, completely in sync and a third figure, this time a woman, landed behind them, the smirk on her face plain even in the dimly lit street.

"They're with me," she said as her cronies grabbed Kara's wrists. Kara, to shocked to do anything of use, simply stared at the woman, recognizing her straight away.

"Astra."


	22. Justice

"Astra's back."

Alex moved quickly alongside Hank, who she still hadn't quite decided what to call and so was resorting to 'Hank' until further notice. Kara ambled along behind them, her cape billowing dramatically. The call that she would be arriving with _emergency news_ had come in almost twenty minutes ago, but Kara was relatively unscathed and so Alex hadn't expected it to be such a big problem.

But this? This could potentially pose a bigger threat than she'd accounted for.

"Astra? As in your aunt Astra?" Hank asked, turning a sharp right and coming out into a secondary command centre.

"Yeah, the one who was sent to Fort Rozz." Kara paused to send a mild glare in Hank's direction. Clearly, she still wasn't completely over the whole Fort Rozz thing. "I guess she escaped along with everybody else?"

"Most likely," he replied, stopping at one of the round tables in the middle of the room. Alex followed, her mind racing at the implications that this kind of conflict could bring. Not only was Astra a direct blood relative of Kara's, an issue that would likely present itself in her sister's damn noble heart, but she'd spent a decent amount of time in Fort Rozz. There was a solid opportunity that she had gained some _manic_ alien followers.

"She had a kryptonite knife, too."

And apparently that, as well.

"It wasn't affecting her?" Alex asked, staring at Kara. Because Astra was Kryptonian. The whole point of kryptonite was that it was supposed to block a Kryptonian's powers.

"No, that's the best part. She has a suit that makes her invulnerable to it."

Alex couldn't help the slight tinge of wonder that pulsed through her veins. What she wouldn't give to get her hands on that suit. It must've shown on her face because Hank stared at her with mild intrigue before turning back to Kara.

"That really changes the game. What did she want with you?"

"She tried to recruit me into her crazy scheming. It took me a while, but she left eventually. Probably so she could plan more _schemes_." Kara crossed her arms awkwardly and dropped her eyes to the ground. "All I remember is that she tried to just like, blow up all of our government buildings back on Krypton. That's why she went to Fort Rozz in the first place. I hadn't heard from her since."

Hank nodded, leaning down onto his elbows and looking grave. "This could be the start of what we've feared since Fort Rozz first crashed on Earth. A city-wide attack."

Before Alex could even register what was happening, Kara nodded and started to move off. Gathering her wits, Alex jumped forward and started after her.

"Where are you going?"

"To go find her. I'm going to bring her in."

Alex shook her head, stopping so that she had fully caught Kara's attention. "No, you're not. You need to take a break. Plus we need to be at Frankie's in twenty minutes."

Kara gave Alex a blank stare.

"Don't tell me you forgot."

"Oh, shit. Dinner at Frankie's."

"That's right," Alex goaded, noticing Hank move back off down the corridor, barely concealing an exasperated sigh. "And you know how important it is to her that we finally meet Brad properly. The DEO can look for Astra, I'm not letting you bail out."

"I wasn't planning on bailing." Kara stood with her arms on her hips before she started to follow Hank out of the room. Alex quickly followed.

"Oh, and by the way," Alex whispered, speeding up to get next to Kara. "We were wrong about Hank. He didn't have anything to do with my dad's death."

"How do you know?"

"Just... trust me. I do."

Kara looked over at Alex, a troubled expression coming over her. Seeing it, Alex slowed to a more leisurely pace as they entered the Central Ops.

"What are we gonna tell Frankie?"

"About what?"

"I don't know, about everything."

Alex regarded Kara with scrutiny, watching her lips tighten in concern. Alex had already told Frankie about Hank but of course, Kara didn't know that and she was not exactly planning on bringing her up to date on that particular circumstance anytime soon.

So she decided to focus on the other part of _everything._

"I think it's safer for her, at this second," Alex hesitated, seeing Kara's face grow in confusion as she realised what was being suggested, "that we keep her out of it all. Just for a tiny bit."

"Alex, I'm not sure that's a good idea. Remember how angry she got last time we did that?"

"And I don't blame her, but this whole Astra thing is big, and we won't neglect it this time, just leave it out of the conversation for a bit until we can figure out how to stop her."

Kara shook her head plainly, looking a little bit like an overgrown child.

"I think you might be making a mistake."

"Maybe I am," Alex said, dropping her voice so that the agents walking past couldn't hear. "But I care about her safety and right now, this is the best thing for it."

Recognizing that she wasn't going to get anywhere, Kara shook her head and stopped, facing Alex. "Fine, but just know that I will be fully blaming you if this goes sour."

"And you have every right to."

Alex watched Kara toy nervously with her cape. She was trying to make it clear that she liked to think she knew what she was doing, trying not to make it obvious that she really wasn't sure if again leaving Frankie out of the picture was the right decision because really, Alex had no clue.

Because Kara was right. Frankie had not taken it well last time and rightfully so. The last thing they needed was for the whole thing to backfire. While the action still cast a heavy doubt in the back of her mind, Alex took solace in reminding herself that it would only be for a while, a few days at most. After that, well that was a bridge that would have to be crossed upon arrival.

Looking up, Kara caught Alex's eye.

"Look, I've gotta pick some stuff up but I'll meet you at Frankie's soon."

"I'm going to murder you if you're late."

Grinning, Kara sped out of the DEO and disappeared from sight.

* * *

Kara was running late.

"Frankie, I'm sure it'll be fine."

Alex's astounding words of wisdom, unsurprisingly, did little to qualm Frankie's nerves.

"Alex, Brad's going to be here in like, ten minutes and she's still not back yet."

"But what does it matter if Brad arrives a little before Kara? We're both here, aren't we?" Alex asked, gesturing between the two of them.

Frankie looked up from the pot of boiling water she was standing over to glare at Alex, who just laughed.

"Dude, it's not funny!"

"Ok," Alex said, shaking her head and moving around the counter to stand next to Frankie. She reached out and took hold of Frankie's shoulders, spinning her around so that they were facing each other. "I'm sorry. But I promise you that whether or not Kara's here when Brad shows up, we'll make it work."

Frankie nodded reluctantly. She knew that already, of course she did, but Brad had never properly sat down and met anyone important to her. Plus, the impressions he already had of her sisters were bad enough, he didn't need to add Kara's perpetually late attitude to the melting pot.

"Frankie,"

"Yeah?"

"Your water's over-boiling."

Frankie swore, pulling the lid off the pot quickly, determinedly ignoring Alex's smirk as she moved to sit back down again.

Once the water had settled, there was a frantic banging from the door. Frankie stared hopelessly at Alex, fearing that Brad had chosen to arrive ten minutes early, but Alex waved her hand pointedly and went to open the door.

From the hall outside, Frankie could hear a slight commotion before Kara barged into the apartment in full Supergirl paraphernalia, carrying several overflowing bags of clothes.

Frankie sighed in relief, ignoring the odd dinner outfit, and reached into a bowl, pulling out a handful of partially dried pasta that she'd lovingly prepared for the occasion. Alex however, didn't miss the cape and followed Kara suspiciously into the living room.

"Sorry, Supergirl. How can we help?"

"I'm really sorry, I got caught up with some kids, but I'm gonna go get changed," Kara said and without even turning to look at her again, Frankie could tell that she was leaving something out.

"Couldn't you have come in through the window like a normal person? I thought you were Brad."

"Sorry, Frank. I really wasn't thinking and-"

"I can tell," Alex pressed, leaning on the back of the couch, staring Kara down with an agonizing glare. "What were you going to do if Brad was already here?"

"I really have to change, this skirt is giving me the biggest wedgie."

Frankie watched Alex carefully, who's expression was surprisingly pointed. She was staring at Kara, almost chastising her like a child. Whatever the reason, she really couldn't have cared less at that exact moment, there were more important things going on. She dropped the pasta into the water and turned back to Kara, pointing at the bags she was carrying.

"Well, you've got plenty of choices there."

"No, I was going to take these home, they're all the clothes I've got left over from changing at work."

"So you brought them here?" Alex asked, raising an eyebrow.

Kara paused, staring at the bags, seeming to only have just realised that she was still holding them. The room fell silent, Alex and Frankie exchanging amused glances from opposite sides of the counter. Still watching the clothes, her brow furrowed, Kara shook her head, moving to the window.

"Dammit. Wait, let me go home real quick and drop it all off,"

"Kara, hang on a second," Frankie said, finally dropping the act in favour of acknowledging the sauce that bubbled away contentedly in a pan behind her on the stove. "Go change. You can leave the stuff here."

Without another word, Kara sped off into Frankie's bedroom, several shirts falling out of the bags on the way.

"What's going on with her?" Frankie asked, dropping the spoon into the sink and turning off the heat on the sauce.

Alex paused for just a second too long before she answered, making very painful eye contact.

"I've got no idea."

She moved away from the couch and came to stand back at Frankie's side. They stayed in silence for a moment, Frankie just watching the pasta swirl around the pot and listening to Kara bang around in her room.

"Are you not concerned that Kara got caught up doing something at your place of work and you don't know what it is?"

"No, not really. I would've heard about it if it was important. It was probably just some rowdy alien." Alex reached around Frankie to snatch up the salt and pepper shakers. "It smells incredible, by the way."

"Thanks." Frankie grinned, finally pulling both pots off the stove just as there was a second, less panicked knock at the door.

"I've got it!" She yelled, trying to pour the pasta into a strainer and the sauce into a bowl with both hands and almost missing both targets completely. Alex just watched her in pity for a second before dropping the salt and pepper and going to open the door.

Frankie, desperately cleaning up the slight mess she'd made, placed the pots down more gently and moved to be next to Alex, who was taking Brad's coat.

"Hey babe," he said, reaching forward and pulling her into his arms, ignoring the face Alex gave as she turned hurriedly around to avoid watching.

"Hey, I missed you."

Brad lifted her up off of her feet and into the air, an involuntary squeal of surprise escaping her lips. When he put her back down again, her heart was pounding hard and she turned around to see Kara (now changed into something more appropriate) and Alex, both staring at them in wonder.

Coughing a little awkwardly, Brad grinned sheepishly down at Frankie as they both moved into the kitchen, only letting go of each other's hands once she made it clear that the dinner needed to be finished.

The next ten or so minutes passed in relative comfort with the only real conversation happening between Kara and Alex although Frankie wasn't fooled. She knew that Brad would be in for a grilling the moment plates were set down in front of him, but in the meantime, Alex seemed content enough to simply eye him cautiously every now and then.

Kara, to Frankie's relief, looked to be a little more lenient. It almost delivered itself as a good cop bad cop situation and Frankie could tell that Brad was seeing it too. His hands were jammed uncomfortably into his pockets and he kept staring at her uneasily. She couldn't help but scoff internally; if only there were a way to tell him that the night had barely even started.

Soon enough however, Frankie was able to set the table and start handing out the pasta. The moment Brad had something in his bowl, Alex rounded on him.

"So I hear you're really dating my sister?"

To Brad's credit, he was a big dude, but even he couldn't help but shrink slightly under Alex's intense gaze. Kara turned to pinch her, but Alex just managed to duck out in time.

"Uh, yeah. I suppose," he muttered, finally mustering up the courage to look Alex in the eye.

"You suppose? Look, are we trying to be serious here, or not? This isn't an 'I suppose' kind of situation-"

"Alex," Frankie scolded, swatting her napkin in her general direction. Satisfied with the uncomfortable silence, Alex leaned back in her chair, folding her arms in a dignified manner. Frankie knew her well enough to know exactly just how much she was enjoying this.

Deciding it was her turn, Kara stabbed a few pieces of pasta before flinging her fork wildly in Brad's direction.

"So, tell us about yourself. I don't want Frankie dating a complete stranger."

"Well," Brad started, a little taken aback by the sauce flying in his direction. "I'm twenty-seven years old, I grew up in Metropolis-"

"No, dude. Give me the juicy stuff. Tell me about what you had for lunch."

This time, it was Kara's turn to get elbowed. Frankie turned back to Brad apologetically.

"I'm sorry, this is weird. You guys are weird," she said.

"It's fine, I can see the resemblance."

Alex gave Brad a strange look before turning to whisper something in Kara's ear. She frowned disapprovingly.

"Shoot, I forgot the cheese," Frankie whispered, only just noticing its absence and she pushed her chair back, getting up to go and grab it from the kitchen counter.

"I'll come with you," Alex said pointedly, following her up.

Surprised, Frankie slowed down when she made it to the cheese and let Alex catch up with her. When she did, Frankie caught the slightest whisps of regret in her eyes.

"What's going on?"

"Frankie, I don't know if we can trust him."

Caught by surprise, Frankie turned back to Alex but carefully avoided eye contact, knowing what she'd see if she made it.

"I've got no idea what you're talking about."

Alex's fingers tightened desperately around Frankie's hands and she was forced to put the bowl of back down again. "Please, just tread carefully, ok? I'm getting a 'bad news' kind of vibe from him."

"I will," Frankie whispered, her eyes sliding back over to where Brad and Kara were engaged in a deep conversation of some sorts. "But I'm still not sure what you're talking about."

"Just be cautious, ok?"

"Alright."

"Pinky promise?"

Frankie sighed, watching Alex's outstretched pinky warily.

"Pinky promise."

* * *

The next day, Frankie had given up on almost everything related to her job.

Minute after minute ticked by at an agonizingly slow pace and her computer had never felt more useless as she scanned the firm's database, searching for any shred of evidence that could point her in the right direction. The case, as it stood, was looking almost impossible to defend. She'd gotten the chance to talk to a few of the kids involved, but none of them seemed to have anything to say and everything she found just kept pointing back to the owners of the orphanage being one hundred percent innocent.

She would've asked Crawford for help, but it could jeopardize her overall outcome seeing as if she did, he was likely to spend every waking second breathing down the back of her neck, complaining about how she was getting it done.

So, in a desperate bid for satisfaction, she'd resorted to some of the pettiest tactics that she'd learned from high school.

She'd looked up _Detective Raymond_ on every professional website she could: Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and she'd even tried to search his name on the NCPD, anything to dig up the dirt on this guy. But after hours of fruitless typing and zero results, Frankie turned to the one lead she'd gathered from his Instagram.

Detective Sawyer, likely his partner on the case. From the few photos she'd seen of her on his feed, she could understand why he'd been itching to have her at his side during the interview with Ms Baker. She was hardcore and tough and honestly, just from a few pictures, Frankie was a little scared of her.

Deciding that this was now something solid to go off, she proceeded to type _Maggie Sawyer_ into every single one of the search bars she could find and low and behold recovered her Instagram.

"Ooh, tracking someone down are we?"

"Go away, this is not any of your business."

Louise moaned and pulled up the chair next to Frankie.

"You're Instagram-stalking someone, of course it's my business." She dropped her voice and pointed to the photo on the screen. "So who's the lucky gal?"

"Maggie Sawyer, running opposite in the case," Frankie leaned back on her chair, zooming in on the woman on the screen. "I'm trying to dig up some beef."

Louise looked at Frankie, her brow furrowed. "That does not seem very professional."

"It isn't but I'm getting desperate."

Just as Frankie was about to exit and move on, Louise grabbed her hand, forcing her to stop.

"Wait, look at this," she said, dropping her finger to a photo just below the one they had been looking at. It was a photo of Maggie and a girl looking, _intimate_.

"Look at that, she's totally gay."

Frankie frowned, her eyes scanning the new post that was dated at least a year back. "Huh, I guess she is."

"Still not something you can use against her, though."

"I'm not looking for something to use against her," Frankie said, defeated. "Just, something that'll give me a glimpse into her mind, that's all."

Watching her carefully, Louise spun around so that she was fully facing Frankie. Her eyes filled with a concern that Frankie wasn't sure she'd seen so prevalently in her best friend.

"How's the actual case going, though?"

"What, with all the _real_ research?"

"Yeah,"

"Absolutely shit. I can't find anything at all."

Louise sighed and dropped her gaze to the floor. Frankie's fingers flittered over the keyboard, punching in the name of the orphanage for what felt like the millionth time that day and getting exactly the same results as before.

She ran her hands through her hair desperately, completely disrupting the ponytail that had been slowly falling out over the course of the afternoon. Not only was she stuck on the case, but she couldn't stop thinking about what Alex had said to her at dinner the night before.

What had she meant when she said she got a 'weird vibe' from Brad? She'd pulled out the old pinky promise from when they were kids which clearly meant something important because the last time Alex had used it was when she was swearing her off telling Kara about Hank.

Alex never made her pinky promise unless it was over something important.

"Frankie?"

Turning back to Louise, Frankie hummed lightly to show that she had, in fact, been paying attention the entire time.

"Are you ok?"

Frankie closed her browser and quickly opened up to the case file just as Crawford came prowling along behind her, glaring over her shoulder.

"I have henceforth begun what I believe is called _'Giving Up',_ " she declared, dropping her hands onto the desk and swinging her chair backwards until it rested on only the two rear legs.

"You may have given up but that's a dangerous way to sit on your chair."

"Oh come on," Frankie whined, gently lowering herself back down again until Lousie looked satisfied. "You're no fun."

There was a loud cough from behind them and without even having to turn around, Louise jumped up and scurried away, leaving Frankie alone with Crawford. He leaned down, apparently back for vengeance, and hissed coldly into her ear.

"Get on with it."

Frankie shivered despite herself, watching him up and leave without another word, adjusting his coat tightly around his shoulders.

"Sir yes sir."

* * *

The sky outside Winn's window was shot through with the most breathtaking assortment of reds and oranges and pinks, all swirling together into a beautiful masterpiece.

The huge, floor-to-ceiling glass right next to his desk was probably the most distracting thing about the whole apartment because there were so many instances where he'd been doing something of ultra-importance, only to be distracted by some bird having a fight with a leaf on the road below.

But more often than not, it was mornings like those ones when he'd been up for longer than he could remember doing nothing of real significance, staring out at the sunrise that really made him wonder what the hell he was doing.

Admittedly, these moments had become increasingly sparse over the last few weeks, especially now that Kara was getting some action as Supergirl. Especially since he'd finally been introduced to her younger sister.

That morning though, he had a lot to think about.

He couldn't stop thinking about it.

James, and Kara. The fact that he was still angry about one brief hug was making him even angrier, angry enough to still not have apologised to Kara because he knew that he was being an idiot.

But he couldn't explain it. He couldn't tell her why that tiny thing hurt him so much when it didn't involve him, when they had every right to be doing it, when he didn't even know himself what the big deal was.

There was just something about seeing them that close that made him squirm, seeing them be that chummy after what James had told him. Because James liked Frankie and now that he knew that, he couldn't unsee it.

All the sideways glances, the extended looks and the buttering up, it had all been there and Winn had just been too stupid to miss it. Kara and James were in no way _intimate,_ but even knowing that, he couldn't help but want to break the whole thing up.

Winn shook his head as though everything would just helpfully fall out of his brain and he could forget about it and stood up from his desk, heading to the fridge to try and find something mildly intriguing to eat.

Finding nothing new since he last opened it, he resigned to filling a glass with water from the tap and snagging an apple from the bowl on the end of the counter.

He wasn't entirely sure why he felt so strongly as to the way James acted, especially since it was really none of his business, but he could sense this deep, desperate desire to intervene before shit got messy. There was a part of him that knew that things were going to get messy and he just didn't want that to happen.

The sun was now mostly set and Winn realised he was standing in relative darkness. Making his way to the light switch, he flicked it on and jumped completely out of his skin.

Outside his window, hovering starkly against the haze of the National City evening was Supergirl, looking incredibly spooky in the harsh light from his apartment, although the second she realised that Winn could actually see her, she dropped a few inches and lost the edge she needed to keep in one place in the air.

His heart still racing in his ribcage, Winn quickly moved to the window, sliding it open for Kara. She clambered in awkwardly, apologizing over and over again for scaring him.

"Look, it's fine," Winn said, not at all truthfully and he shivered at the cold gust of air that whistled through the open window. "But you couldn't have used the door?"

"I'm sorry, I'm kind of all over the place at the moment."

Winn shook his head but didn't question it. He watched her move further into his living room and she turned dramatically to face him, her expression growing serious.

"Winn, we have to talk."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **the umbrella academy soundtrack fuckin slaPPs**

 **also sorry this chapter was like hella late, i missed out on about a week of school work and Im currently trying to figure out how to finish it with NAPLAN and exams around the corner hehe**

 **K bye**


	23. And the American Way

"Winn, we have to talk."

Winn stared at Kara, her suit framed perfectly in the black void of his still open window. She really did always have a certain cinematic tendency about her, he had always admired that, but was there really any point when they were alone? His apartment was getting cold.

She seemed to sense what he was thinking and turned behind her to shut the top half of the floor-to-ceiling window she'd flown through.

It seemed as though she'd finally cornered him. He really hadn't been trying to avoid her, but after they'd talked at CatCo, he'd realised that that was exactly what Kara thought he had been doing. He'd really just tried to take some time to figure out what to say.

What a fat bit of luck that had done him.

"Is this still about James and I hugging? Winn that was ages ago and I've already tried to apologise."

Winn stayed silent, trying his best to avoid the gaze he knew Kara had trained on the top of his head. Of course that wasn't what it was about, not really. Well, not Kara and James, just James.

"I miss you, Winn."

He looked up to meet her eyes and saw that they were surprisingly dry. Instead of making him feel more at ease however, it simply reminded him of all the mistakes he'd made that had led up to that exact moment.

"Kara, it wasn't your fault."

Winn paused.

Kara was watching him expectantly, clearly waiting for him to continue, but he wasn't sure where he should go. He'd sort of hoped that putting her at ease would be the end of that particular topic of conversation, but as it turned out all too often, he was quite wrong.

He wouldn't normally have been worried about how to explain himself because he and Kara... they got each other. More often than not, they were usually on the same page and it didn't require too much effort for her to understand what he was thinking, but that meant that when she had no clue what his next sentence was going to be, he had no way of putting it into words.

He quickly ran through the scenarios in his head, each playing out like a badly developed film reel, and soon came to the conclusion that there was only one way he could explain his actions.

"James likes Frankie."

Winn watched as Kara's face fell. Whatever she had been expecting him to say, it clearly hadn't been that. He could see the gears turning in her head as she too put the pieces together, just as he had when James told him in the cafe what felt like months ago.

Her expression shifted faster than he could keep track of, but Winn had known Kara well enough to note the tiniest hints of heartbreak echoed across her eyes before it was quickly masked.

"Well," she said, her voice cracking only slightly before she straightened up, feigning nonchalant-ness as though she was effectively fooling Winn. "I can assure you that James does not like me as well, so there's no problem."

Winn knew how painful it must have been for her just to admit that one thing, let alone how it must have felt for her to realise that her little sister was in the exact same position she wanted with all of her heart.

"I'm sorry, Kara."

"Winn, don't apologise."

Winn opened his mouth to say something else, but Kara stopped him.

"Just promise me that you won't tell Frankie?"

Winn bit back the question growing in the back of his throat and instead nodded, seeing Kara relax just slightly. She opened her arms wide and walked forward, wrapping him up tightly. The suit was not forgiving, but he didn't care and they stood like that for a while, enjoying the fact that there was nothing else around them other than the soft whirring of his ceiling fan and the guarantee that his mistake wasn't a problem anymore.

* * *

Frankie stood outside the front door of the orphanage, taking in the sheer size of the boarding house. The whole way down the huge driveway, she hadn't been able to believe how similar it was to the boarding school she'd grown up in and now that she was right out the front, a lot of painful memories were being brought back to her mind.

The classic red brick mansion was situated in the middle of a large piece of farmland, and when she looked close enough, she could spot a few kids running around in the fields. It was picture perfect.

Sighing, she rung the doorbell and stood back as almost instantly, the door swung open and she was greeted by a teenage girl.

"Hi, welcome to Baker's House for Children Without a House, how can I help you?"

Slightly taken aback by the enthusiastic welcome, Frankie smiled and readjusted her bag on her shoulder.

"Yeah, uh my name's Francesca Danvers, I've got a meeting with Ms Baker."

The girl stood for a second, staring at her, speechless like she was a celebrity before she seemed to remember where she was and nodded.

"Right, of course. Follow me," she said, turning and strolling into the building. Frankie followed, her eyes scanning the dark hallway they were heading down. It soon opened into a large entrance with a spectacular grand staircase leading up to the higher floors.

To the naked eye, the interior looked as astonishing as the outer grouds did, but Frankie could see hints of grime and disrepair further down the offset corridors. It was surely no accident that she was whisked into a room off the main hall pretty damn quickly before she could even stop to marvel at its size.

When they walked through the door, Frankie saw that it was some kind of office with two plush couches facing each other at the front and an ornate desk and chair behind them. She was straightaway struck by just how many kids were sitting in the room. Around fifteen of them turned to look at her, wide-eyed and terrified. Rosalie Baker was nowhere to be seen.

The girl watched Frankie for a moment before she muttered something she couldn't hear and turned, scurrying out of the room.

The kids looked to be between the ages of twelve and seventeen, and they all seemed to be absolutely petrified of her. They sat in an extremely awkward silence for a few minutes, before the one that seemed to be the oldest cleared his throat.

"We're really glad you're here, Miss Danvers."

Before Frankie could answer, the door swung open and Rosalie Baker herself came bustling into the already overcrowded room. She made no greetings and didn't seem to notice Frankie, but immediately sat down behind the desk, not even looking up.

The oldest boy turned to a younger girl, who winked, before he faced Baker once again.

"Ma'am, Jen's looking for you. She says that you got an email from Mr Jackson."

To Frankie's surprise, Baker's face paled immediately and she finally looked up to the boy.

"You're joking."

"I'm not, Ma'am, I promise."

Baker's mouth fell open and she didn't even hesitate before screaming at them all to get out. Before she could even register what was going on, all fifteen kids stood up and starting swarming to the door, catching Frankie up in the middle of them. A few of them were a good head or so taller than she was so she didn't have any problem blending in, but just as the crowd shoved its way through the tiny doorframe, she felt a hand grab hers and she was pulled away from everybody else and up the stairs.

She heard a few muffled celebrations from the entrance but Frankie turned to see who had her hand. It was a boy, likely no older than fifteen and wearing a red flannel so faded, it almost looked like it would disappear off his shoulders. Once they reached the second-floor landing and he was convinced that she was following, he let go.

Frankie watched in complete confusion as he led her down a dusty and decrepit hallway that only confirmed her earlier suspicions and into what looked like a bedroom a short way from the staircase.

He opened the door, still without saying anything, and sat down on a grey bed in the far corner by a grimy window. Frankie stared around the room, trying to mentally capture everything she saw from the muted pallet right down to the dust thickly coating every available surface. It looked nothing like the pictures she'd spent hours looking at, although she should have known better than to believe a website that had 'Baker' slapped into every possible sentence.

She wondered why anyone would want to be associated with a place like this.

"You're younger than we expected."

Frankie turned sharply back to the bed. The boy hadn't moved, but he was now eyeing her suspiciously. She was glad she hadn't sat down straight away.

"Thank you..."

"It wasn't a compliment."

Frankie nodded slowly, trying to avoid the piercing gaze of the boy who was still watching her like a hawk.

"Well, I can assure you that I'm more than qualified to take on the job."

He didn't reply, just continued to stare at her.

"My name's Josh," he said after a minute, stretching out his hand.

"Francesca Danvers." Frankie shook it carefully, watching his mouth tighten as she did so.

"I have two rules for this conversation. One, nothing said here leaves this room. Two, you don't show what I'm about to show you to anybody, understand?"

Frankie nodded again, this time completely sincerely, and Josh, seeming satisfied, eyed the space on the bed next to him. Frankie took the hint and sat down.

He reached under the bed and pulled out a brick-like laptop, turning it on in silence. When he was logged in, he pointed to a small wooden box on the table on the other side of the room, whispering almost absent-mindedly, "Could you please grab that for me?"

Frankie did as she was asked, still slightly afraid of Josh, and passed him the box. It was an odd shape, not smooth like she had first expected, but covered in bumps and ridges. Josh stared at her out of the corner of his eye and turned away, hiding the box. He did something with it, Frankie heard a click, and he faced her once again, holding out a small, unmarked USB.

She took it and held onto it while Josh deposited the box back on the table. When he sat back down, he held out his palm and Frankie dropped the USB into it. She sat for a minute, wondering what on Earth he could planning on showing her that required this much security, but she didn't have to wait for too long because after a few seconds, a video popped up on the screen and Josh went still.

The video was dark, but Frankie could just make out a figure in a bed. A minute later, the person (who Frankie assumed to be Josh) was joined by another, more feminine figure, roughly the same size. The camera seemed to focus slightly and she could see the bed more clearly. She could just see Josh twitching ever so slightly under the covers ad she realised that he must have been pretending to be asleep.

The longer the video continued, the more Frankie grew uncomfortable and she could sense the real Josh growing tense next to her. After a few more seconds, he clicked out of the video.

They both sat in silence, Frankie trying to process what she'd just seen.

"Has she done that to anyone else that you know of?"

"I don't think so. I'm one of the only kids with a single room." He paused, his voice growing softer. "She likes to take advantage of it."

Frankie nodded, frowning. She remembered what she'd seen on the case file.

"My notes said that there were four of you... aren't you supposed to be living somewhere else?"

Josh looked confused for a second before he realised what Frankie was talking about.

"Oh, those guys? They are, but Baker does that to everyone here. They just wanted to get the police looking into this place. Stupid way to do it if you ask me, but it's done now."

Frankie sighed. She quickly realised how tightly her hands were tied. He'd just given her a vital piece of evidence that she wasn't allowed to show anybody, disproven the only part of the case she had thought to be concrete and the cops didn't even know he existed.

"With all due respect, why haven't you gone to the police with this?"

"Because Baker's paying them to keep their mouths shut. I can't trust them anymore."

Frankie's blood rose, no wonder the cops were so determined to keep her out of the loop, but she ignored it. Josh was more important.

"But you could trust me?"

Josh looked up at her, his eyes trained carefully on hers, and he shrugged nonchalantly, not replying as though it didn't matter. Frankie turned away from him, smiling to herself.

He disconnected the USB and held it out to her. She took it, confused, and Josh started to turn off the laptop. Seeing her expression, he cleared his throat.

"Keep it," he said, dropping his voice. "I've got other ones."

Without another word, he stood up, turned, and left the room, slamming the door behind him. Frankie stared at the USB in her hand, her mind running at a thousand miles a minute.

What the hell was she supposed to do now?

* * *

"Danvers, nice to finally meet you."

Frankie eyed Detective Maggie Sawyer carefully, her gaze landing on the oversized NCPD windbreaker and her firmly outstretched hand. A smug grin was growing on her face like she already knew she had the upper hand and despite her being at least half a head shorter.

Something about her made Frankie nervous. It might've been the fact that short people always seemed like they could murder you twice as easily as someone of an average height, which was further reinforced by her free hand resting oh so gently next to her holstered pistol.

Or it could have been that she now knew that the entire meeting was happening because of bribery.

Frankie reached out her hand and shook Maggie's, noting how firm her grip was and tried to match it as best she could. Maggie nodded politely and broke the shake, shoving both hands into her pockets.

A slightly awkward silence stretched between them, Frankie trying not to acknowledge the part of her brain screaming at her to call Sawyer out right there, but after a few seconds of the sounds of staplers and printers and typing, she cleared her throat and opened the door to the meeting room.

 _Stay professional._

From over Maggie's shoulder, Frankie could just see Lousie giving her a pointed thumbs up, a massive shit-eating grin on her face.

Following Maggie into the room, they both sat down at opposite sides of the table.

After a moment of deliberation and quickly scanning her notes, Frankie cleared her throat.

"So I think if we start with the details just to make sure we're both on the same page and then-"

She broke off, seeing a smirk growing rapidly on Maggie's face.

"What?"

"This is your first time, isn't it?"

Frankie paused, doing her best to keep eye contact.

"No."

"Hey, it's ok, no need to be nervous," Maggie assured, her smile widening playfully. "Everyone's first time sucks, trust me."

"I assumed that wasn't relevant." Frankie nodded pointedly at the files on the table between them. Maggie coughed a little, sitting up straighter in her chair and looking a little ashamed, to which Frankie gave herself a mental pat on the back.

"I will admit, I did a little bit of snooping when I first saw your name and read some of your old mock reports. You've got chops, kid."

Refusing to make it clear that she'd done exactly the same thing to Maggie, Frankie chose to ignore most of that statement (especially the part that gave her a twist of pride because damn this woman was supposed to be the enemy, not a serial complimenter,) and turned to the other question she'd had floating in her mind.

"How'd you know I was new?"

Maggie looked up from the file she'd been reading, furrowing her brow after a second of thought.

"What do you mean?"

"What made you realise this was my first case going to court?"

Maggie laughed drily, dropping the paper back onto the table and shook her head.

"You've got a quality, kid." Upon seeing Frankie's face drop slightly, she quickly continued. "Not a bad one, just something all the newbies have. Something in their eyes, they're always trying really hard to impress people."

I am not, Frankie thought to herself before immediately dropping her shoulders, trying to make it seem like she was more at ease. She watched Maggie pick up the folder and scan the documents inside, her brow furrowing ever so slightly. She bit her lip and looked at Frankie, her expression a little bit confused.

"Is that everything?"

Frankie nodded. "Yeah, there isn't much yet. I just met one of the kids yesterday, but I didn't get what I was hoping for."

"What did they say?"

Frankie looked at Maggie quickly before dropping her eyes. She had no clue what she was supposed to tell her, especially since the only thing she'd gotten was an elaborate story that proved everything she was fighting for that had to remain secret.

"Come on, Danvers. We're supposed to be on the same page, that's the whole point of today," Maggie said, taking the glance for suspicion. "If you know something, you've gotta spill, those are the rules."

"There's a fifth kid, name's Josh. He told me that Baker's just a violent person and that she does what the other four kids claimed to everyone there."

"Is that it?"

Frankie sighed.

"He also told me that he's been the victim of sexual assault at her hands."

Surprised, Maggie sat up a little straighter in her chair.

"Did he give you any evidence?"

Frankie pictured the USB in her head, the decision already made.

"No."

Maggie's face grew passive and she sighed in disappointment., dropping the folder once again.

"That's helpful, then."

A silence grew between the two of them and lodged itself between the cracks in the walls and floorboards. The air grew still as Frankie thought about what she was doing. She knew that the rules around discovery were concrete and, should she break them, result in serious consequences, but something in her heart told her to keep this one quiet.

"You got any siblings?"

Frankie shook her head, shifting uncomfortably in her chair.

"I'm not sure this is the right time, detective."

"Ok, I'm sorry. Just wondering." To her credit, Maggie did look bashful, going back to staring intently at the table. "It's not like we have to lose too much time over this."

Frankie paused, her brow furrowing suspiciously.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Sighing, Maggie looked her dead in the eyes, her expression growing slightly pitying. "Look, I hate to be the one to break it to you but this case is basically ours. You've got no evidence, your story doesn't add up and your clients can't keep a straight face."

Frankie paused, her breath catching in her throat. There was no way that this detective had just dropped her cool to tell her that she was going to lose. Frankie was the only one who was allowed to say that.

She stood up and pointedly moved to the door, making it clear that she was done with the meeting.

"Two older sisters, Alex and Kara." Maggie's mouth dropped open for a moment before she could stop herself, but she quickly regained her composure and nodded, taking the hint.

Frankie was done with being the underdog and fed up of always coming third in everyone's mind at the thought of 'Danvers.' This job was a real opportunity to prove that she could be a hero, that she could be what everyone around her was expecting her to be.

Maggie got up and joined Frankie at the door, tightening her jacket around her shoulders. She looked guilty, enough to make Frankie feel a little bad for being so abrupt, but as Maggie had clearly implied, the meeting was over. There was no point in hanging around.

"I guess I'll be seeing you around."

Maggie nodded.

"That you will. Later, Danvers."

* * *

Later that night, Frankie sat alone in her apartment, scanning her notes over and over again. It was late and she was tired, but she wasn't going to sleep without finding something. She didn't quite know what she was looking for, maybe something mildly incriminating? The will to continue? The piece of the puzzle that would break the monotony and send her down the road of breakthrough after breakthrough until she finally came to a solid conclusion?

No. That didn't seem likely. Not when she'd been handed a folder that was frustratingly empty except for the names of the people involved. Especially since she'd now met the people who belonged to those names and realised that they too had no idea what was going on.

Frankie stared for a moment at her own name scrawled hastily under the prosecution headline. Detective Sawyer's words were playing on repeat in her head, the despairing soundtrack to a despairing search. This case is basically ours, you've got no evidence. You're never going to win and should probably just quit being a lawyer all together because you obviously have no clue what you're doing.

Ok, so maybe she hadn't said that last part, but she had clearly been thinking it. Plus, it was at least partly true, Frankie definitely didn't know what she was doing. She had no clue how she was supposed to move forward from here and how she could close this case once and for all because Josh deserved the knowledge that whatever happened to him in the past at the hands of Rosalie Baker would never happen again.

Deciding that whatever she was trying to do could wait until at least the morning, Frankie got up from the table and strolled to the couch. She turned on the tv without much thought and flicked through the channels until she landed on Legally Blonde. Of course it was Legally Blonde. Could she really not go two minutes without being reminded that her life literally consisted of nothing but waiting for the inevitable day of doom that was October second?

A loud banging from her door echoed through the empty apartment and Frankie jumped, turning to stare at it. The banging continued, growing louder the longer it went on and she quickly switched off the tv. She looked around, searching for anything she could use as a weapon and her eyes landed quickly on the huge butcher's knife lying in the sink.

Standing up, Frankie moved as quietly as she could and snatched up the knife, her hands shaking. As soon as she approached the door, the noise stopped and the apartment grew silent once again, her shaking the only disturbance of the otherwise still room.

Taking a deep breath, Frankie closed her fingers tighter around the handle of the knife and gripped the doorknob. Counting to three in her head, she swung it open and faced the tall dark mass in the doorway.

She raised her hand just as the light from her apartment flooded into the hallway and when her eyes adjusted, she could see that she was looking into the beaming face of Brad.

"Hey," he said, stepping straight into the room.

Frankie dropped her hand, staring as Brad marched his way into her kitchen, immediately reaching for the bottle of whiskey she kept on her top shelf for whenever Alex was feeling particularly ambitious. She stared at him, utterly confused as he pulled off the lid and started taking swigs.

"Hello..." Frankie followed him into the apartment, shutting the door carefully behind him. "What are you doing?"

"Why are you holding a knife?"

Frankie watched his gaze drop to her left hand which still held the butcher's knife as he completely ignored her question. She noticed quickly that room had filled with the smell of alcohol, but it wasn't the whiskey. It was definitely something stronger. She walked over to the island counter he was standing behind, putting down the knife, and realised that the smell was coming from him.

"I was defending myself, you didn't tell me you were coming over."

Any relief that Frankie had felt after realising that it wasn't a crazy axe murderer that was trying to break down her door dissipated the moment she spotted Brad's eyes widening, a hint of glee sparkling as he fixated on the knife lying on the counter.

He didn't answer her, instead reaching down to pick it up.

"What are you doing?" She asked again, her tone more pointed this time around.

Brad held up the knife and pointed it jokingly at her.

"You were going to stab me, that's pretty funny."

"I wasn't going to stab you, I was going to stab the random asshole that was banging on my door at two in the morning."

He moved closer to her, leaving the knife at eye level. He was laughing.

"And it's not funny, put the damn knife down."

"You were going to stab me," he said again, brandishing the knife mere inches from her face. It waved back and forth just barely missing her nose every time it passed. She stood frozen with shock as Brad's laughter filled the room, utterly incapable of moving out of the way. After a few moments, he cheerily dropped it back into the sink and Frankie listened to it clatter in disbelief.

"What the hell, dude?"

Brad stared at her, his mouth still curled into a hint of a smile.

"I was just having some fun, that's all."

He turned and strolled over to her couch as casually as if he'd just informed her that there was a spider on her ceiling and Frankie could have sworn she heard him mutter something about easing up under his breath.

She watched him sit down and turn on the tv, scoffing when Legally Blonde came back on, and tried desperately to wrap her head around what had just happened.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Hey y'all,**

 **I'm not dead, I promise. I can't apologise enough for how late this chapter is, thank you for your patience and for sticking around while I try to figure out what the hell is going on. I can confidently say that the next eight chapters have been pretty much completely planned and over mostly finished, so delays like this one shouldn't happen again for a long while.**

 **K bye.**


	24. Pages Between Us

Frankie really didn't have the time to be going out for coffee.

With her first court date looming menacingly over her head, she was so swamped with paperwork and reading and meetings that she couldn't even _think_ about taking lunch breaks at the office, let alone at Noonan's. She'd wasted the entire morning trying to find the slightest shred of evidence that any bribery had taken place in the NCPD, but had come up completely empty, to no surprise.

There was too much on her plate for her to deal with.

So it was probably a good thing her sticky buns had started to periodically disappear.

Frankie realised quickly that the hand waving in front of her face was not only covered in cinnamon sugar, but also held one of the missing pastries, and focused her attention back on Kara, who was staring at her worriedly.

"It is ok if I have this, right?"

Frankie didn't answer; she honestly couldn't care less, but watched as her sister bit her lip, obviously second-guessing her decision to blue-collar-crime her way through her alien metabolism.

"I mean, you've been sitting here for ten minutes and you haven't touched it, but I didn't know you'd be that upset about me taking it."

Still staying silent, Frankie bit back her mild enjoyment of watching Kara try to hold a conversation on her own and instead focused a lot harder than was necessary on taking a sip from her mug of coffee.

"Why aren't you talking?" Kara asked, squirming in her seat, clearly uncomfortable. She put the sticky bun back on Frankie's plate with a huff. "Something's obviously wrong, what is it?"

Frankie suddenly remembered exactly why she was upset and her enjoyment of Kara's awkwardness dropped significantly. She pushed the plate across the table towards Kara, her appetite vanishing, but Kara didn't take it back.

"You said we weren't allowed to talk about work stuff."

"Yeah, well I thought we could both do to forget about work for a minute."

Frankie didn't say anything, but leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms as if that settled the conversation. She knew that Kara wouldn't be able to resist the bait and really, if she was being honest, she needed an excuse to talk to someone other than Louise.

"But... since your problem is work-related, I guess I could lift the ban."

Putting her mug down, Frankie tried to suppress a grin. Kara's brand of comfort was one that she'd sorely missed. It'd been a long time since they'd hung out by themselves and while Louise was great, she tended to come off a little strong.

"I'm so fucking pissed," she whispered under her breath as a waitress passed a little too close to their table. When she continued, her voice was louder but still quiet enough to stay unnoticeable to the diners around them. "I have nothing going for me and every time I come up with something to use against Baker, it's either against the rules or there's no way I could include it in an argument."

"Wait, I missed the context. What's going on?"

Frankie watched Kara, her eyes narrowing. After a second, she realised that Kara really had no idea what she was talking about. She'd always just assumed that it had come up in conversation somewhere along the line, but now that she thought about it, Louise really was the only one who had any of the story.

Frankie relaxed slightly in her chair, taking another sip of her coffee. She then launched into the story from the very beginning, telling Kara what she could and leaving out what she couldn't. Kara was a perfect audience and listened intently, causing an odd feeling of guilt to flood her stomach. Frankie regretted not filling Kara in sooner, because it had been too long since they'd just talked, and it felt great to get this stuff off her chest.

"Crawford presented it like this big thing that was gonna make my career and everything, but it's like nobody actually cares what happens, they just want the money out of the win. It's not even just Josh, the whole orphanage is hanging onto every update I can give them."

Kara watched her from across the table. She was clearly sceptical, but Frankie tried her best to bite back any statements of accuracy in order to keep the story as simple as possible. Kara's lips tightened slightly before she sat up, a confused expression growing across her face.

"Aren't the police supposed to be on your side? I thought their whole goal was to put bad guys in jail."

Frankie laughed, her voice turning bitter as she shook her head.

"No, I don't even get that luxury. The woman's well respected and she's willing to put good money into the NCPD to keep it that way."

Kara's eyes widened in surprise, but Frankie continued without waiting for her to speak.

"Plus, the cop on the case is a complete asshole. It's like she knows that she's better than me and she can't resist making sure I know it. Like, at least I don't have to get paid to do my job well."

Several of the people around them began to look in their direction, confused expressions on their faces. Kara raised an eyebrow at Frankie's last statement

"You know what I mean," Frankie snapped, sitting back in her chair.

She wasn't used to being in the position she was in now. She'd spent three long years in National City's top law program, but not once had she come across a practice question that involved bribery amongst the police department's highest executives.

She really hoped that Kara had some ideas.

"Remember when you wanted to be a detective?"

Somewhat taken aback by the abrupt change in the conversation's direction, Frankie looked over at Kara in surprise.

"Sure."

"You and I used to binge-watch Law and Order and you'd predict the endings and get them right every single time."

Frankie shrugged.

"It's not that hard, you just have to remember that unless it's going to court, it's never the first person they arrest and then you're good."

Frankie remembered those countless hours clearly, as if they'd only just happened the previous week. It had started after Alex moved out. Kara had gotten ridiculously clingy ridiculously quickly, so the two of them had started a tradition. One weekend at the school, one weekend at home. Every weekend spent together, solving mysteries.

"You were so upset when you didn't make it into the academy," Kara said, her eyes locking with Frankie's. "I remember you called me at three in the morning, crying your eyes out and you told me that your entire world was over."

So far, this sudden change of pace had only served to make Frankie feel more upset than she already had been rather than lift her spirits, which is what she had hoped Kara's intention would be.

"Then you changed your mind and applied for law school. You got in. You aced all of your exams, assessments, mock cases, the lot of it. To the average outsider, you were the perfect lawyer. But deep down, you still wanted to be on the front lines. You never gave up on that dream."

"Where are you going with this?"

Kara pointed a sugar-coated finger in Frankie's direction, waving it threateningly in her face.

"Then this cop comes along and she's everything you've wanted to be since you were a kid. She's a detective and she's working on the kinds of cases that you used to be obsessed with."

"Are you kidding me?"

Kara's eyes widened in surprise, but Frankie wasn't quite sure why. _She_ hadn't just been compared to a traitor.

"Were you listening to a thing I just said? Kara, she's getting _bribed._ I'm not jealous of some random person who just happens to have my dream job. I'm fucking angry because all I want is to make a damn difference, and I don't want to have to be involved with someone who couldn't care less about the people she's supposed to be working for!"

People from the neighbouring tables were starting to stare more persistently now, but Frankie didn't pay them any attention. She could see Kara shrinking back in her chair ever so slightly, but didn't slow down.

"She's not even doing her job right! I would much rather be telling the truth and making sure that someone awful is getting met with the justice that they deserve than be paid to sit back and watch the whole thing fall apart without giving a crap."

"Frankie, I didn't mean it like that."

Frankie lifted her chin, keeping eye contact with Kara. She paused very briefly to catch her breath but quickly faced her sister fully once again.

"I'm sure you didn't, but your point still stands."

"This is ridiculous." Kara shook her head incredulously. "You're being ridiculous."

"Am I?"

"Yes."

"That's not the point," Frankie said quickly. "The point is that I'm trying to do something important and you're spoiling it."

 _"So petty..._ " Kara mouthed under her breath.

"Ok, fine." Frankie reached down into her bag and pulled out a twenty-dollar note. She huffed, dropping it down on the table. "I'll see you later."

* * *

Kara watched Frankie get up in a sulk and storm out of the cafe.

This was silly. It was honestly stupid. So, maybe Kara shouldn't have made the comparison, but once again, Frankie's habit of blowing things way out of proportion was shining through as bright as the sun on a summer day.

She loved her sister, she really did, but Rao was it difficult to deal with her sometimes, especially when she was already putting up with pretty much the same thing from Alex almost all the time as well.

The moment one thing didn't go Frankie's way, she was up in arms and arguing with somebody to try and fix it. Sometimes, it was admirable, but most of the time, it was just plain infuriating.

Trying to ignore the stabbing feeling in her gut that just came with getting angry at people, Kara stood up herself and paid for the bill, pocketing Frankie's twenty dollars. She'd probably give it back, mainly because Kara herself had eaten most of the food Frankie had ordered.

She headed for the elevator in the corner of the cafe to get back to work, carefully trying to avoid the eyes of the waitress she knew recognised her as Cat Grant's assistant, and when it arrived, stepped in as quickly as she could. She wasn't quite sure why she didn't want anybody to see her leaving, but her stomach twisted uncomfortably every time somebody looked at her and that was not a fun feeling.

"Hold the elevator!" Someone yelled from further inside the cafe and instinctively, Kara threw her hand over the elevator doors, just as they groaned into motion. She looked up and spotted James jogging through the tables and chairs, apologising when he bumped into an annoyed customer. Kara's heart sank when she realised who it was, but James, panting his way into the elevator, didn't seem to notice.

"Thanks, Kara," he said, flashing a wide smile in her direction. Normally, it would have made her blush, or giggle or weak in the knees, but she didn't feel like that anymore.

What Winn had told her had changed things in her mind, completely rerouted her entire thought process when it came to James. She hadn't been alone with him since then, but as the doors closed and the elevator started its ascent, Kara realised that there was one thing she had been dying to tell him.

"I know."

He looked at her, his eyebrows furrowed.

"What?"

"I know you like Frankie," Kara said as quietly as she could while being sure she'd still be heard over the noise of the elevator. For a moment, James' expression remained confused, but the second he realised what she meant, it turned into one of anger.

"Dammit, Winn shouldn't have-"

Kara shook her head.

"It's not Winn's fault. But I know, and you don't have to hide it anymore."

His face broke into a sudden, wide grin, a jarring juxtaposition to a mere few seconds ago, but Kara couldn't bring herself to match it.

"You're not mad about it?"

"I'm not mad," Kara sighed, doing her best to look happy. Clearly, she was failing, because James' face fell and he ducked slightly to catch her eyes.

"Kara, you just said you weren't upset," James said, his voice turning a little sour, a quality Kara wasn't used to hearing in it. The more that he stared at her, waiting for an explanation, the more that she realised how much of their relationship had truly been in her head.

"I never said I wasn't upset, I said I wasn't mad."

She'd spent months pretending to herself that there was something there, some unseen potential, that he could maybe have an interest in her, but he hadn't been worried about her finding out because she would be upset, he was worried because Frankie was her sister.

Kara needed to get it through her head; he was expecting her to be protective, not jealous.

"What are you talking about?"

"I liked you, James!"

Kara held her breath as James took a small step back. He looked shocked. _Of course he did_ , Kara reminded herself. He had been completely oblivious to her feelings the whole time, that had already been established, but it wasn't as though she was completely alright with spilling it out into the open.

"I liked you and you never saw it. You never noticed." Her voice dropped to a whisper as they passed the twentieth floor. "I was so stupid. Rao, I actually... I'm sorry, James, this isn't your fault."

James simply stared at her. The elevator shuddered to a halt and there was a second of pure silence, before the doors opened and revealed Catco's pristine lobby. He opened his mouth a few times, but Kara left him no further time to answer her.

Frankie was lucky. She didn't realise how many people saw her in the way James did. She thought that she was the sister that nobody cared about, that she needed to prove herself to the world? Maybe this small fact was enough to prove her wrong.

A sudden plan formulating in her mind, she turned away from James and left him stuttering by the elevator doors. Maybe Frankie was mad at her, but it wasn't important. All Kara needed to carry it out was one vital piece of information.

 _Alex have you got any idea when Frankies court case is?_

Sending the text without a second thought, she dropped her phone back into her bag, trying to suppress a smile as she marched over to her desk because it didn't matter how mad she was at Frankie, she still wanted to be there to see her big day.

Even if it was at least partly a guilt trip.

* * *

Winn stared at the framed photograph he held in his hands.

When Frankie had seen it, she'd called him adorable, but he couldn't quite figure out why. He'd always seen his home-made bowl cuts as something to be ashamed of, but maybe she could see something in them that he couldn't.

The photo had been taken a week before they moved from the farm and Winn had been ecstatic about the prospect of his dad owning a toy company, just as any kid would have been. Plus, the day in the picture had been his seventh birthday. His mother had made a cake from scratch, the first and only year she'd done so, and he'd never been more excited to blow out birthday candles.

He smiled, remembering how he'd refused to go anywhere without the dog. God, he'd been a brat, but once they moved to National City, his list of chores had grown longer and there wasn't any way he could do any of them with Chew Barka by his side. Eventually, there wasn't a lot he could do with Chew Barka by his side since their house was small and cramped and his dad had given up listening to his barking, so they'd sold him to the sweet old lady down the road.

Winn had known, even as a kid, that the toy shop had changed things around their house and soon enough, the excitement had well worn off. Soon enough, his house had become a little bit darker and a little bit colder.

His fingers tightened around the frame and he replaced it on the shelf. The little boy in the picture couldn't see where Winn was now, and _he_ didn't know that moving to a big city would be the best thing that could've happened to him. He had been scared.

Winn didn't want to remember that scared little boy.

A sudden knock rang out from his door and Winn jumped slightly. He straightened his shirt and moved over to open it, only hesitating to note the time. It wasn't late by any means, only around eight in the evening, but the only visit he'd been expecting that afternoon had been from his landlord, which he was relatively glad had never happened.

When he opened the door, he was greeted by the sight of Frankie, draped in an old coat and leaning heavily against the doorframe. She looked considerably more dishevelled than what he would've expected from someone so early in the night, her hair was tousled and she seemed to be having considerable trouble standing up on her own, but nevertheless, she grinned dopily up at him, her copper-coloured eyes shining in the dim light from his apartment.

"Hey," she said, drawing out the word longer than was necessary as she struggled to stand up straight. Winn watched, bemused, as she kicked off her low heels and casually strolled her way into his apartment.

"Hi," Winn answered quickly, following her and shutting the front door behind him. He was surprised, but not altogether unhappy that she'd shown up, he needed something to take his mind off the picture that loomed in the corner of his vision.

"I hear you're running quite the hostel over here."

Winn's eyes were drawn to the bag that Frankie dropped on his dining table. The small crash it made was not one that he'd been expecting from something so tiny, but he shook it off as Frankie marched to his couch and, dropping down heavily, reached for the half-empty bag of sour cream and onion chips. She sank back into the cushions, staring up at him innocently.

"Where did you hear that?"

"I'm not sure, something just told me it was true."

Joining her on the couch, Winn kicked his feet up, figuring that if Frankie was so keen on inviting herself inside, they might as well get comfy. His socks were an obnoxiously bright orange covered in dark grey TIE fighters and he thought they were quite stylish, but when he looked over, he caught Frankie staring at them oddly.

He quickly dropped his feet from the coffee table.

"I would've gone to Kara's but I'm angry at her," Frankie muttered, mostly ignoring the socks and pausing to stuff a huge handful of chips into her mouth before continuing without bothering to swallow. "And if I'm being completely honest, I don't remember what Alex's address is and something sounded weird about telling the cab driver 'a little past the sex shop on West Ebor,' because that's how I remember where it is and I didn't want to just say a random number and have to potentially walk all the way to her building before-"

She broke off, catching sight of Winn's poorly controlled giggling.

"Wow, I didn't take you for someone who would be so immature."

"I'm not immature, I just..."

Winn shut his mouth quickly. He really didn't know what to say from here, especially since Frankie was normally so careful about making sure that she asked before she came over. Again, not that he minded, misery loved company, but this was completely out of character for her.

"Are you doing ok?" He asked tentatively, turning to see Frankie feeling around the bottom of the bag.

"There's a bar down the street from the firm, and I respect beer, I do, I respect it. So I decided, why not, just this once, give the beer what it deserves?"

"To be in your stomach?"

"I'm drunk, Winn. Have you figured that out yet?" Frankie stared at him, wide-eyed and annoyed. She dropped her hands to the couch cushions. "I'm drunk, and I'm tired and I'm sad, can you just accept that?"

A little taken aback, Winn narrowed his eyes. This had not been where he expected the conversation to turn. Of course Frankie was drunk, he was an idiot for not realising it sooner, but it still didn't quite explain everything. Turning to face her fully, Winn caught Frankie's eye and said quietly, "Not until you tell me why you're sad."

"Because nobody believes in me." Before Winn could open his mouth to say something comforting, Frankie added, "And don't you dare try to say some cheesy shit like _oh, Frankie, I believe in you,_ because it won't work tonight."

She looked set, her expression had hardened, so Winn didn't fight it.

"What would you like me to say?"

He studied her carefully, taking the opportunity to note how the flickering light from a few of his candles fell on her face. Her jaw tightened determinedly, and Winn was forcibly reminded of Kara's expression when she had come to him for help with finding Jeremiah.

This, like that afternoon, wasn't the moment for heartfelt discussions.

"I don't want you to say anything. But, you could potentially go up and get another bag of chips?" She asked quietly. Her eyes had darkened considerably over the past few minutes, and now, as she held up the empty bag, she looked like more like a child than an adult, cautiously requesting something she definitely shouldn't be allowed to have.

Winn shook his head, quietly smiling to himself as he stood up, trying to ignore the steady pounding in his ears.

"You don't like salt and vinegar, do you?" He called out over his shoulder to Frankie, who was waiting on the couch.

"No," she replied equally as loudly.

"Got it."

Winn swung open the door to his pantry and bypassed the forsaken bag, reaching instead for the classic one. When he turned around, he was surprised to see that Frankie had silently gotten up from her spot on the couch and planted herself right by his dining table against the wall.

"Is it weird for people to wave knives at you?"

Making his way over to her, Winn put the bag down on the table. He looked at her curiously.

"Unless they're trying to mug you, then yeah, a little bit," he said, laughing slightly. Frankie ignored the chips, instead picking at the fingernails on her right hand, avoiding his eye.

"Why?" Winn asked.

"Brad came over a few nights ago. He was even drunker than I am. I guess he thought it was funny..."

Winn paused. All humour gone from the situation, he stared at Frankie in disbelief. She looked as though what she'd just said wasn't a big deal, and wandered over to his fridge, pulling out a bottle of beer when she found them, but Winn wasn't willing to pass it over so easily.

What did that mean? Had Brad pointed a knife at her as a joke, or had he threatened her? They were yet to meet in person, but he'd still seemed nice enough from how Frankie and Kara had described him, polite, funny... Maybe his sense of humour wasn't as good as Winn had assumed it to be.

Questions spun around his head like crazy, but none of them seemed to be anywhere close to being answered that night, especially with Frankie being so nonchalant about the whole thing. He doubted any answer he could get would hold any weight.

Despite how much Winn wanted to discuss what Frankie had just said, he stopped himself, remembering the promise he had made to himself only minutes before.

 _This wasn't the moment for heartfelt discussions_.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Have y'all read Genesis by Bernard Beckett? Truly transcendent experience, like I was literally a different person when I finished it. Highly recommend it.**

 **K bye**


	25. If It's Cold In The Water

_Send the video._

Frankie sat at her dining table, finger poised over her laptop's mouse.

 _Don't send the video?_

She had two hours to make a final decision, but she was no closer to it now than she had been two weeks ago. She'd drafted, deleted, then redrafted her email to the judge so many times that she almost had the thing memorised, but every time, it got harder and harder to sign it with her name.

The USB Josh had given her stuck out of one of the ports on the edge of the computer, a red light flashing to let her know it was working.

Sometimes, Frankie managed to convince herself that she didn't need the video, her case was strong enough without it. She had multiple witnesses, however straight-faced they happened to be, and confidence. But just not the right kind of confidence. She knew that she would have no trouble faking her way through her defence, but there wouldn't be a defence to fake if there wasn't any case to begin with.

She needed to send the video. Sending the video meant guaranteed proof, a guaranteed victory. But sending the video also meant a guaranteed broken promise, and Frankie wasn't about to pull a stunt like that so early on.

From next to her, Frankie's phone began to ring interrupting the silence that had been steadily closing in on the afternoon. She closed her laptop and as she picked it up, she felt her stomach twist into a tight knot.

She hadn't spoken to Winn since she'd woken up in his apartment a few nights before, mainly because she didn't exactly know what she would say to him if she did. She couldn't remember exactly what had happened, but all she could think about was the way he'd looked at her when she'd woken up the next morning.

Frankie let the phone ring out, but less than a minute later, it started vibrating again. Whatever Winn wanted, he clearly wasn't going to let up before he got it.

Clenching her jaw, she answered the call with a practised air of dismissal.

"Look, Winn, I'm really sorry but I can't talk right now."

 _"Ok, ok, I'll make it quick."_ His voice came through the other line sounding slightly panicked and for a moment, Frankie wondered if she'd been ignoring him in the middle of an Earth-shattering disaster.

"Are you alright?"

 _"What?"_ Now he just sounded confused. _"Yeah, of course I'm ok. Why wouldn't I be ok?"_

"I don't know, you sounded like you were in trouble."

Frankie fully expected Winn to reply with some kind of joke, so when there was only silence from his end of the call, she began to grow slightly nervous.

"What did you need to talk about?" She asked, a broken nail on her thumb catching her attention.

 _"You don't- you won't remember... um-"_ Frankie's heart rate began to climb steadily the more that Winn stuttered. _"You don't remember what we talked about on Friday night, do you?"_

Whatever it had been, it sounded important. Frankie just hoped that he hadn't gone out of his way to tell her something that she'd now completely forgotten because that really would have been a problem.

Then, she was struck by a sudden thought.

"We didn't- I didn't... I mean. Like,"

 _"No! No, no, no, no. Definitely not. Nope. Uh uh,"_ Winn practically squeaked, his reply a little too quick. _"We did not do that."_

If Frankie wasn't so pressed, she would've felt slightly offended. Was it really _that_ revolting of a thought?

 _"No, you talked to me. About something."_

"Winn, you're being vague and it's starting to scare me a bit."

 _"I'm sorry, I just... You came over, and we talked..."_ he paused. _"About Brad."_

"I..." Frankie broke off, confused. "And? About what?"

There really wasn't that much to talk about, unless her drunken self had thought it was a good idea to run on over to Winn's in the middle of the night just to make him jealous, which, if his earlier assurances were anything to go by, was likely a lot harder to do than she thought.

Unless...

"Oh my God," Frankie whispered, finally realising what Winn was talking about. "Oh my God. That's so stupid, what was I thinking..."

 _"Hey, hang on,"_ Winn interjected, his voice getting even higher. _"Look, I get that you probably weren't planning it like that, but I just want you to know that I'm here for you. Always. And if you ever need a place to crash or someone to talk to, I-"_

"Winn, I really appreciate that, but... Look, I don't know what I told you the other night but trust me, it's really not that big of a deal."

 _"Frankie, I want to help, I don't know how to help."_

Frankie sat up straighter in her chair, almost trying to prove to an invisible crowd that she really believed what she was saying.

"You don't have to help, Winn. There's nothing to help with anyway, there's no problem."

Her phone buzzed again in her hand and pulling it away from her face, Frankie read Brad's name on the screen.

"I'm sorry, Brad's on the other line, I've gotta go."

 _"Frankie..."_

"I'll see you 'round, Winn."

Without waiting to hear his reply, she ended the call.

Flicking through to Brad's line, Frankie answered as cheerily she could.

 _"Frankie, finally. I've been trying to call you for an hour."_ That was a lie, her phone could easily prove that much. She ignored Brad as he launched into a story about something that happened at his job, her mind buzzing from her conversation with Winn.

She wasn't mad at him, but she couldn't say she was completely happy either. She had no idea what was causing her to feel the way she did, but the deep, gouging sensation in her gut was an indication of something and this time, she wasn't going to ignore it.

Frankie stared once again at the email that had been defining most of her thoughts for the past week.

She finished typing it out and attached the video, pressing send before she could convince herself not to. She may not be able to figure out her own feelings, but the least she could do is make sure that Josh and everybody who came in contact with Rosalie Baker wouldn't have to suffer because of it.

* * *

Page after page of DEO files flicked past Alex's eyes faster than she could read them. It didn't matter. She'd already gone over every single one in astounding detail at least a dozen times each. None of them were helpful.

Her father's name was flagged almost two thousand times over the course of six years. He had been an incredible agent, she knew that much from reading each and every single admission. But she couldn't for the life of her find any files detailing what had happened the night he died.

The one Winn had found had been useful in finding the rest of her father's details, but this was something she needed more of. From what she knew, Hank, _J'onn_ , she reminded herself for the millionth time, had been the one who had wiped them all, but she wasn't about to ask him to run a sweep of the recycling bins.

She believed his story, but still, she wanted to see the words for herself. _Killed in action, dead on arrival,_ it didn't matter, she just needed something.

Something to prove that she hadn't just made the whole thing up.

* * *

Frankie watched as Josh slowly began to deteriorate.

She tried to pretend it wasn't happening, but the desperate glances he was sending her after every question the lawyers threw at him were particularly hard to ignore. It didn't help that he and the friends that had agreed to come along seemed to be telling five different versions of the story.

She understood more than anybody that what she was asking them to do was difficult, but she would have hoped to elicit at least a little more organisation out of them.

The video, despite being filmed in a dark room and hard to make out anyway, had been blurred as per her request. The audio was still clear, but there was no way to see what was actually going on. From what she'd been able to pick up from them, most of the jury didn't really mind, but if the way Baker's lawyer had nodded to his team like it was the final brick in their mansion of success, then maybe, just maybe, it was going to be a problem.

Carlos Anderson was a better lawyer than Frankie. That wasn't even a question. He'd defended some of the biggest pharmaceutical cases in recent history and made more money in a month than she saw in six. She'd studied his cases in school, presented on his techniques.

Frankie had no idea what he was doing leading Baker's team.

There wasn't anything for him here. It wasn't his area, he wasn't going to gain any valuable experience; Frankie knew that the only thing stopping him from backing out was the big fat paycheck he'd earn when it was all over.

"And you don't want to explain again what happened that night?"

Anderson stood tall with his hands in his pockets, staring at Josh. His half-smile made him look almost like a hyena, just waiting for its prey to stumble before it moved in for the kill. It made Frankie feel sick to watch and every nervous look Josh sent her only made it worse.

"Mr Anderson, the witness has already answered that question multiple times, maybe you should try using your _ears_."

But Anderson didn't look put off. If anything, he almost seemed glad that someone had brought up Frankie's incompetence. Even the judge was watching her slightly exasperatedly. At least someone was enjoying the show.

Despite how it may have seemed, Frankie hadn't completely given up. She had a plan. It just may have not been going as well as it could have at that particular moment. No big deal, she just had to wait until she could get Detective Sawyer alone.

Clearly, Anderson had something up his sleeve as well because, after a few moments of silence, he stood up a little straighter and spun around from the bench as though he'd just had an epiphany.

"Now, if I'm not mistaken, this is your first case, is it not, Ms Danvers?" When he turned away from Josh, Frankie caught the grin he sent Baker back at their table. Before Frankie could reply, he continued, not looking at her, but instead addressing the jury as though he was asking them. "Your first dip into the world of defence, fresh off the desk..."

She immediately knew exactly where he was going with all of this. Discrediting the opposing lawyer, while morally questionable and frankly just a dick move, was effective nonetheless.

"I ask you, Ms Danvers... what makes you qualified to be defending Mr Lucas?"

Frankie thought hard about her answer. She tried to remind herself that she wasn't the one on trial, their lawyer was not supposed to be questioning her authority. He finally turned around to face her, and when he did, she could see the sleaze dripping from his innocent expression.

It was clear that he thought he had backed her into a corner.

The judge was watching her expectantly, and no matter how much she wanted to prove Anderson wrong, he was at least partly right.

Despite how much she really disliked him, Frankie pictured Crawford standing in front of her, his hands jammed into his blazer pockets, moustache perfectly shaped above his upper lip. His goal had never been the balance of justice, more like the maintaining of his _stellar_ reputation but still, the same piece of advice separated itself from his barrage of last-minute wisdom:

 _Always object. If you think something's wrong, there's no harm in making sure you're right._

"Objection, this line of questioning is in no way relevant."

Now that Frankie thought about it, she realized that this advice probably wasn't too sound. The judge considered her carefully, his gaze narrowing. After a second, he relaxed in his chair, looking back to Anderson.

"Sustained."

Frankie could've sworn she'd caught the slightest hint of a grin flashed in her direction. She sat up a little bit straighter.

 _Morally questionable, but still effective._

Anderson's grin was wiped clean from his face pretty damn quickly, but before he could regain his composure, there was a crash from the back of the courtroom. Frankie's head whipped around before she even realised she was doing it and it took a second for her eyes to catch up to the rest of her body and even when they did, she still wasn't quite sure what she was looking at.

The door to the courtroom was swinging wildly on its hinges as a woman tried to regain her balance. A very familiar beige coat hung off her shoulders and when she turned to face the rest of the room, Frankie felt her heart stop.

Almost immediately, Kara began to babble some incoherent apology as she collected herself. One of the security guards that were posted near the judge must have been glaring at her because she stopped suddenly and looked directly at Frankie.

Her mouth hung slightly open, her eyes wide and guilty, and the slightest touch of pink crept steadily into her cheeks.

Trying her best not to react the way she normally would've in this kind of situation, considering that it involved swearing and other generally un-ladylike behaviours, Frankie slowly turned her body back to the front of the room. She could only hold Kara's eyes for a few seconds before she was reminded of their last conversation. What on Earth she was doing there, Frankie couldn't have guessed.

"Shall we continue?" The judge asked, still watching Kara suspiciously.

Frankie heard a few stifled giggles from behind her and another "I am so sorry..." from Kara but kept her head determinedly to the front of the room. Never had she wanted to throw hands with an invulnerable alien so badly.

"Very well. Mr Anderson, are you finished interrogating Mr Lucas?" Anderson nodded, already moving back to his seat. "Then, Ms Danvers, I invite you to begin your examination."

Ignoring the rustling that echoed from the benches behind her, undoubtedly from Kara trying to find a seat right smack bang in the centre, Frankie stood up. As Josh passed her on his way back to his seat, he gave her a weak smile that she tried desperately to return. If there was one thing she was good at, it was pretending that she wasn't slowly losing her mind.

Frankie could feel her heartbeat quicken with every step she took towards the bench and each time she raised her eyes, she caught the gaze of a different member of the jury. Each person she made eye contact with had the same, bored expression on their face.

This plan had been brewing for a while, but Frankie still wasn't sure if it was perfect. She was going to need courage, lots of courage, but if it worked, it was a guaranteed victory.

"I'd like to start by calling Detective Sawyer to the stand."

Sawyer stood up, her dress uniform done up tightly to the last button. Frankie had to admit, it did look good, but it was no excuse for the fist bump she gave Anderson on the way over or the way she dropped into the witness chair at the bench as though she owned the entire room.

"If it's alright with you, Detective Sawyer, I'd like to just run over what happened one more time."

Sawyer nodded nonchalantly, her arms folded in front of her.

"Great. Interrupt me if I'm getting something wrong," Frankie said, readjusting her grip on the evidence file in her hands. This was her moment. There was no way she was about to screw it up. "So you were the officer who was investigating-"

"Whom."

Frankie frowned. "I'm sorry?"

"You told me to interrupt you if you were getting something wrong." Sawyer smiled innocently. "It should be whom."

"'You were the officer _whom_ was investigating Ms Baker's case'?"

"Yes."

"That's not even remotely grammatically correct."

When Sawyer's smirk only grew wider, Frankie sighed. _She was not about to screw this up._

"Where are you at in terms of investigating my client's claims?"

"We're in the process of closing the investigation."

Frankie fought the urge to break out into a wide grin. If everything kept going like this, then maybe, _just maybe_ , she still stood a chance.

"On what grounds?"

Sawyer threw Frankie a look, one that she knew well from Alex's habit of acting like Frankie was too dumb to understand whatever medical term had come up in the conversation. "There isn't enough evidence to keep it open. I got orders from the men upstairs and I'm just following through on them."

"Funny you should mention the men upstairs." Sawyer was really just putting the pieces into place for her at this point. Barring the small hiccups earlier, everything was going exactly as it should have. "I assume you've provided the court with a copy of the official document authorising the closure?"

"Of course."

"What reason is given on that form?"

According to the looks she was getting from the judge, Frankie knew she needed to hurry it up, but all she needed was a few more minutes.

"I've gone over this, the case was closed on the grounds of, and I quote, 'insufficient evidence to indict the suspect.' You can read it for yourself."

"I have reason to believe that isn't true."

Frankie was about to continue with her gripping speech, already planning her victory pose in her mind, before Sawyer interrupted, an eyebrow raised condescendingly.

"Danvers, have you got any proof?"

Frankie remained silent. This wasn't supposed to come until later.

"Seems to be quite a common theme today."

She was going to convince the jury with her words and hard-hitting statements before the question of evidence came into play. But it didn't matter, she could skip to the end too if she wanted.

"Were you or were you not involved in acts of bribery and corruption within the NCPD?"

The moment the words slipped out of her mouth, Frankie knew she'd done something that couldn't be taken back. For a second, one tiny moment, the entire room went silent. She could hear her own heart pound in her chest, the kind of pounding that came when you let slip a secret that you'd been holding on to for years. The rhythm in her chest was faster than one she'd felt in a long time and Frankie couldn't help but wonder why anyone would ever do drugs.

The silence was only meant to be momentary, though, because the room erupted in whispers only a second after she'd finished talking, the second that everyone had processed what she'd just said.

"Was there a monetary reward for you or other detectives involved in the investigation given to you by the defendant?" Frankie had to strain her voice to be heard as the jury's whispers turned into words, and then shouts, most of them calling attention to Frankie's complete and utter lack of respect.

The judge called for quiet, and almost instantly, it was received. Frankie was shocked at the level of power a few simple words held but didn't speak again, the quiet almost like a spell that constricted her throat as well as everybody else's.

"Ms Danvers, I must ask you not to make claims you cannot support." He watched her from the bench, glare prominent even under his bushy greying eyebrows. "Is your examination complete?"

It took a while for Frankie to swallow whatever adrenaline was still coursing through her body, and when she did, her voice came out smaller than she'd ever heard it before.

"Yes, Your Honour."

"Then please be seated."

Before Frankie could move, Anderson stood up from his seat and held up his hand. "Your Honour, if I may," he said, gesturing to Sawyer. The judge nodded, and before she could even pretend to have any dignity left, Frankie was ushered back into her seat. Anderson grinned even wider as he took the floor and suddenly the hyena was back, only this time, it didn't need to wait for an opening to attack. Its prey was already dead.

"Detective Sawyer, I just have one question for you."

Sawyer nodded, her gaze following Anderson carefully as he paced back and forth in front of her. Frankie could clearly see that they'd practised this part of the case one too many times for it to still be considered a natural delivery.

"Of course."

"I want to draw the jury's attention once again to exhibit C." The video again popped up on the screens overhead. The jury turned to stare at it expectantly as though they believed they were going to see something different.

"Now, this video could certainly show evidence against the defendant, that is if we could actually see what it was supposed to be implying..." A quiet ripple of laughter bounced across the high ceilings of the room and he smiled like he was some kind of comedian. Josh shrunk slightly lower in his seat next to Frankie. "I just have one small query."

Frankie's heart began to pound. Surely he wasn't about to call her out on the video. After everything she'd already done, he didn't need to go there.

Anderson's back was facing Frankie, but she didn't need to see his expression to know what it was. "Detective Sawyer, were you shown this video prior to the trial today?"

"I was not."

Anderson turned to Frankie.

"Ms Danvers, do you mind explaining to the court why that might be?"

"The video was presented to Judge Wilson prior to today and was kept confidential by the request of my client on the grounds that it contains images of a sexually-explicit nature. To my knowledge, that action doesn't violate any statutes."

"And you'd be correct if it weren't for the fact that confidentiality can only be in practice if at least one member of the opposing team has been given the evidence." Anderson's eyes narrowed, but his hands came out of his pockets and clasped themselves in front of him, showing everybody exactly how pleased he was with himself. "Considering that neither Detective Sawyer or I have seen the unedited version, I believe, Your Honour, that the action can be considered contravention."

Frankie sunk back in her chair. As if he really needed to point out the one loophole she'd exploited on top of everything else she'd already done that day.

"Mr Anderson, certain evidence can be withheld within reason. This video was part of that exception," Judge Wilson said, his gaze landing on Frankie for only a moment before flicking back over to Anderson.

"Your Honour, I'm simply calling into question the credibility of the evidence. This jury has yet to see one piece of reliable confirmation that the alleged event actually took place, and-"

"What are you implying about my witnesses?"

"Ms Danvers," the judge warned, cutting Frankie off from any further inappropriate comments.

Frankie clamped her mouth shut. She could sense Josh tensing from next to her, but tried to ignore him as best she could.

"All I'm saying is that it's difficult for me to understand why we should choose to consider this evidence viable when you've redacted the most viable parts. How are we supposed to trust you, Danvers, when you aren't even pretending to give us the full story?"

Anderson didn't stop there but instead turned to face the jury fully.

"Not only have you presented the court with evidence that cannot be processed, but you have acted incredibly inappropriately on more than one occasion and to top it all off, accused the NCPD of bribery of all things. I think you've really done more for my case than I would care to admit."

"It is not within your right to be reprimanding me."

"Maybe it's not within your right to be a lawyer."

The judge sat up straighter in his chair and glared at Anderson in disgust, but it didn't matter. The deal was more than sealed. It was so sealed by this point that it would have taken military-grade acid to open it back up again.

Frankie looked over at the jury, watching as they whispered amongst each other, this time quieter than before. She would be lucky at this rate to get another case before a year had passed.

"No further questions, Your Honour."

"Do you have anything left you would like to say, Ms Danvers?"

Frankie could sense the eyes of the entire room upon her. The disappointment, anger, confusion, it was all there. She didn't look up, and as much as she could feel everybody else willing her to make eye contact with them and them alone, just so they could show her how much she truly had failed, she willed herself to only look at the table.

The table was a piece of wood, the only emotions she was going to get out of it were the expressions she found in the faces in the patterns of the grain.

"No, Your Honour."

"Then I leave the jury to a period of deliberation."

The judge got up and gestured for the jury to follow him into a back room and after a minute, they were alone.

Anderson made a move to get up and come over to their table, but he must have thought better because he quickly turned around and headed into the gallery to meet with someone. Frankie couldn't bring herself to go up to Kara, so she simply sat in her chair, an empty hollowness filling every space in her body.

If she'd thought she'd screwed it up before, she'd definitely done it now. She suspected it wouldn't be long until the jury came to their verdict, so now, all she had to do was wait.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Sometimes, all it takes to get a chapter out is to just dedicate an entire Saturday to sitting on the couch and ignoring my entire family to write for hours on end.**

 **I finally got around to watching Dead Poets Society and wow was it incredible. One of my lit assignments was literally just to write a DPS fanfiction (you could check out my AO3 if you wanted to read it lmao), so you can guess I was pleased about that.**

 **K bye**


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